


The Last 100

by Bunn3e



Category: The 100 (TV), The Girl with All the Gifts (2016), The Last of Us, The Last of Us (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombie Apocalypse, Canon Lesbian Relationship, Canon Related, F/F, F/M, Lesbian Character, Military Ranks, The 100 - Freeform, Women in the Military, Zombie Apocalypse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:27:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 30,267
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25076866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bunn3e/pseuds/Bunn3e
Summary: 10 years after the ending of The Last of Us 2.Alt universeSome things to know:- Despite what the name suggests, there aren't only 100 humans left. I just combined the names of The Last of Us and The 100 since they're the main stories being used.- This story includes elements from The Girl With All The Gifts (2016), I recommend reading the plot of the movie on Wikipedia- This story is set in 2049, which is 10 years after the ending of The Last of Us 2.- There aren't many connections to the original storyline of The 100 except for relationships between characters because this is an alt universe.- Some characters who have died as of Season 6 of The 100 are still alive, others aren't.- This is mainly focusing on the world of The Last of Us, but because it's years later, and the fact that  The Last of Us 2 didn't focus on many characters who lived past the ending of the game, characters of The Last of Us universe may not be mentioned for a while.
Relationships: Clarke Griffin/Lexa, Josephine Lightbourne/Gabriel Santiago | Xavier, Octavia Blake/Lincoln
Comments: 19
Kudos: 37





	1. Prologue: 2039, Pt. 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Isaac, leader of the WLF has been killed in battle. Now, his right-hand, Indra, must take over the organization.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In order to not bore those who have played The Last of Us, Part II, I didn't spend a lot of time explaining the events of the game. It shouldn't leave those of you who didn't play the game lost, though, but if you do want more info:
> 
> For information on "FEDRA", "WLF", etc.  
> https://thelastofus.fandom.com/wiki/The_Last_of_Us_Wiki
> 
> For a summary of what happens before this chapter  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Last_of_Us_Part_II#Plot

Black ash and smoke filled the air, and the only light source anyone could depend on was the grand flame devouring countless buildings. The fire grew so big it looked like it would envelope the ocean surrounding the island. Screams of anguish, guns going off, feet and boots thumped against the dirt and grass, Arrows and bullets flew through the air, frantically searching for flesh to pierce. Blood turning red as it escaped the confines of veins and closed flesh. It was almost impossible to tell where any of it was coming from. None of it felt real; it was like a nightmare both sides wanted to wake up from, but they refused to release their grip on each other. The war could not be won, but that would not stop it from being fought. The last remnants of the known human race, and they were massacring each other. 

“RETREAT!”

Indra didn't know if the order came from a Scar or Wolf, but, frankly, she had lost too much blood and too many men to care. In seconds, the once crowded battlefield was left empty, apart from the bodies of fallen soldiers. It was supposed to be a fast, ruthless take over; one final battle to finally purge themselves of the Seraphites. In a shocking turn of events, the seraphites had proven themselves to be worthy adversaries. 

The Wolves had long since forgotten the battle plan and were simply focusing on surviving. How had it gotten to that point? Everything seemed like a blur, and the next thing she knew, she was on the back of a horse.

“Take her home, Helios!” 

Her bones ached. Her head was pounding. She could feel an arrow head buried deep into her shoulder. She leaned into the soft mane of the horse beneath her. _Take me home, Helios._

—

She felt herself drifting out at sea for a moment, before realizing she was on a gurney. It all began to come back to her: Preparing for battle, marching on the settlements along the coast, then the island, seeing men fall, getting hit by an arrow- that’s it.

“Gaia…” She knew her daughter was nowhere near the battlefield, but she had to know her daughter is fine.

“Rest. I’ve already called for your daughter, and I’d prefer if she didn’t have to walk in to see her mother dead.”

Her vision cleared and revealed Abigail Griffin, the best doctor the WLF has to offer, standing over her. She wondered how she got back so quickly. _No, I’ve probably been out for hours now_. She moved to get up. “Thank you for your help, but I have to get to Isaac, I-”

Abby pushed the woman back down onto the gurney. “Rest…”

The change in the doctor’s tone told Indra that something was wrong, but her body was too exhausted to pursue answers. For now, rest.

__

To her, it was a few seconds she had spent with her eyes closed. In reality, she had slept through the night and morning. Indra was immediately blinded by the fluorescents, instinctively raising her arm in order to shield her eyes.

“Mother!”; “Indra!”, two girls rushed to her side: Gaia, her 19 year old biological daughter, and Lexa, her 15 year old (her closest guess) adoptive daughter.

Indra smiles at the two girls, happy that they have come to see if she returned from battle safely. The marryness is not mutual, though. Gaia’s brows remained furrowed, and Lexa appeared to be petrified. 

“I’m alright, just a bit disoriented,” She said, facing Gaia. Indra then turned to Lexa and pointed towards herself, “Happy.” It’s the only word for ‘fine’ Lexa had been able to grasp.

Lexa nodded as her expression shifts to one of relief. Gaia’s expression did not change. “Mother, Dr.Griffin says your injuries weren’t very serious, apart from your arm. However, I fear that is the least of our worries at the moment. Three battalions fell, yours among them.”

Indra sighed as she recounted the memory of the message coming through on her walkie-talkie. So many men gone and no victory to justify their deaths. “I know, which is exactly why I have to speak to Isaac as soon as possible. If you could help me get up-”

“That’s not all, mother,” Gaia interrupted. She glanced towards the door of the hospital room, making sure it remained closed, shielding them from prying eyes or ears. “Isaac and Diyoza were on their way back when they crossed paths with the defector, Abby Anderson. Diyoza says she was accompanied by two Seraphites, one of them killed Isaac.”

The shock filled her body. There must have been some misunderstanding. Isaac couldn’t be dead, not when she had just seen him hours ago, and certainly not at the hands of a Scar- and Abby, abetting them? Diyoza must have gone mad, for all of it seemed like an outrageous tale. “Isaac can’t be dead.”

Gaia grimaced as her gaze fell to the ground, “It’s true, mother. The squad assigned to him and Diyoza all confirmed her story… Had I not warned you all about this undertaking? The church-“

Indra raised her hand to stop her daughter’s oncoming lecture, what the church did or did not say was of little value to her. If Indra was being honest, she’d wished Gaia had never found herself in that wretched church. Nonetheless, her daughter’s religious beliefs would have to wait, for there was a bigger issue at hand. _If Isaac is dead, then so be it; all there is to do for him now is honor him. But Abby? That can’t be true._ “And what of Anderson?”

“She got away with the other Seraphite,” Gaia reported.

Indra cursed the girl’s name. The WLF, which had so graciously taken Abby, and the other Fireflies in, had done nothing but serve her well, and to repay them, she murdered her mentor and fled with the enemy. It was despicable. Abby hadn’t even been bothered to clean up her own mess, and, now, the responsibility would fall upon Indra.

Indra moved to stand, which she manages successfully. She was a bit shocked that she didn’t fall, as her body was still weighed down by the exhaustions of war. She winced at the pain of her arm shifting, but did not linger on it, for she had much bigger things to worry about. “Get Kane and the other community leaders together. There’s much to discuss.”

—

It had been a little over a year since Indra Seya had arrived at the WLF’s doorstep, accompanied by her daughter, Gaia, and a younger girl, Lexa. At first, Isaac was hesitant to trust the newcomer, as Indra had revealed that she had been a part of a former military unit, the “Grounders”. However, it would not be the first time the WLF welcomed former US military personnel into their ranks. After being inducted, Indra had quickly made a name for herself in the colony and became Isaac Dixon’s closest ally within months of her arrival. Her daughter, Gaia, did not have such a smooth transition, though. For months, she seemed to wander the colony aimlessly. Fortunately, within the year, she’d found herself in the Church. A month in, she’d became a devout follower, much to her mother’s disapproval. Nonetheless, they were content with their new life. The Seyas had fallen right into place in their new home. One person the people of the WLF could not account for, though, was the other girl who had arrived with Indra: Lexa. Lexa was always at Indra’s side, and when she was not with Indra, she was nowhere to be found. Many had attempted to speak to the young girl, but were quickly dismissed by Indra, who insisted that the girl was not familiar with English, and any attempts to have a conversation with her would lead to Lexa getting anxious and frustrated. While this was true, it was not the entire truth about Lexa Woods. 

While the Grounders were making their way to the WLF after abandoning their military post along FEDRA in Boston, they’d found themselves between Montana and Washington. One night, the group had decided to set up camp for a night or two. The Grounders awoke to one of their men, Gustus, missing. Indra was able to track the man to a cabin, 5 minutes out from their campsite. She’d imagined the man had wandered off in search of supplies and had stumbled upon more comfortable accommodations. However, when she opened the door, she’d found the unimaginable. A young girl standing over Gustus’ body…

_Indra gasps and stumbles back as she opens the door to see one of her friends, dead. It takes her a moment to notice the girl next to his body. She is covered in blood, but the tears in Gustus’ body tell her it must have been an Infected who mauled him. The girl looks up at her, startled for a second, before preparing herself to attack._

_Indra raises her hands, “Don't worry, I’m not going to hurt you. I promise. Look,” Indra removes the pistol from her hip and lays in on the floor. She takes a candy (government issued) from her pocket, smiles, and holds it out, “Don’t be afraid.”_

_The girl approaches and takes the candy. She sticks it in her mouth, wrapper and all. Indra shakes her head and takes it back, not even bothering to wonder how a girl, who seems to be in her teens, doesn’t know not to eat plastic.. The girl expresses a look of confusion. Indra tears the wrapper and takes the candy out, “Like this.”_

_The girl takes the candy once again and drops it into her mouth, smiling. Indra smiles back, even though she is yet to forget Gustus’ corpse a few feet away from them._

Indra decided it best to take the girl with her. She had done many despicable things in her life, but ‘abandoning a child’ would not be added to the list. There were many unanswered questions at the time, but Indra figured they’d be answered eventually. Not a day passed before the biggest one was. When nightfall came, Lexa had attacked and mauled another Grounder. Luckily, only Indra had been woken up by the commotion. Her first instinct was to put Lexa down, but she simply found it impossible as the emerald eyes stared at her. Fortunately, another idea had dawned on her: _the WLF will never turn us away if I bring them this._ Even then, Indra saw Lexa’s potential. Did she plan on using it for her own benefit instead of Lexa’s personal advancement? Sure, but she believed in Lexa’s worth any which way, so the reasons why didn’t matter. 

Over the next few days, Indra made it her duty to teach Lexa English and keep her fed. Unbeknownst to her, Lexa knew some basic English, having picked up several words from people she’d encountered (mostly forms of describing surroundings and curse words) and later killed, but it wasn’t much. By the time they arrived at the WLF, Lexa understood enough to be spoken to, but couldn’t really hold a conversation. And at that point, only one Grounder remained. Gaia had witnessed most of it, as her mother made little attempt to hide it, but she’d pretended to be oblivious to it all. 

Isaac had been the one to greet Indra and the two girls at the gate. He’d taken Indra to his office, so that Indra could convince him to let her and her daughters stay. It was at this moment that Indra had revealed Lexa’s true nature. Much to her surprise, the WLF had already admitted some “Nightbloods”, as they had been named. Fortunately, though, Isaac agreed to let Indra and Gaia stay, as long as they allowed Lexa to be admitted into the Nightblood research program.

—

The responsibility of the WLF would inevitably fall onto Indra. She would’ve preferred not to lead, but Isaac was gone, meaning the torch had been passed to her. On the other hand, perhaps it would turn out to be a good opportunity. Indra had many criticisms regarding Isaac’s leadership, many of which he’d ignored, but now, Indra would be able to bring about the change she hoped for. The first change she hoped to make was tied to Lexa. 

Lexa had expressed, poorly, but still enough to pull at Indra’s heartstrings, that she hated being hidden from the rest of the WLF. Lexa had also told Indra that the other Nightblood children were also becoming restless, as their days consisted of waking up, being taken to the large observation room to be fed, Dr.Griffin and her team asking questions and taking blood samples, getting to play, and then being locked into individual rooms at the highest floor of the apartment complex. Indra knew the only way to change this was to reveal the existence of the Nightbloods to the WLF. She also knew the people would not react well to finding out children, who were half-Infected and half-human had been living in the colony for the last 4 years. Not unless she changed the narrative.

It was then decided that Indra would reveal the Nightbloods as super weapons; soldiers with heightened abilities, who could walk amongst the Infected and come out alive and untouched, and could easily take on a number of Seraphites. Abby had already started work on a serum, Keryon, which would allow the Nightbloods’ hunger to subside, allowing them to join society so that the people would believe they were not at risk. All that was left was taking control of the WLF.

Indra sat at the head of a very long, narrow table. Along the sides sat the People’s Representative, Marcus Kane; Head Doctor Abigail Griffin; Father Titus Kru; and Charmaine Diyoza, who was acting as the leader of the army in Isaac and Indra’s absence. There was one more guest: Lexa Woods. However, she had not been offered a seat at the table, as she was not a community leader, _yet._ Lexa stood behind Indra, keeping her back straight and chin high, as Indra had instructed her to do so. She knew today was important because Indra had made haste to arrive and get these people together, but she had not quite understood why or what would happen. All Indra had told her directly was to “be ready”, whatever that meant.

Indra cleared her throat and stood. “As you all probably know by now, the attack on Seraphite Island was unsuccessful, but it is with a heavy heart that I must announce the death of our leader. Abby Anderson, along with two Seraphites, murdered Isaac during the retreat. Of course, should Anderson ever be spotted, she will be shot on sight. However, Anderson remaining alive is not our only, or biggest, problem. We are left without direction. While the Seraphites rebuild, the head of our people has been slain. I have no doubt that the people will soon panic, and chaos will ensue. We can not and will not allow that. We need order.”

“You want us to elect a new leader, you want us to elect you,” Abigail Griffin said, quickly catching onto Indra’s plot.

Indra grinned, “We need a new leader, Abby. Surely you can see that. I was Isaac’s right hand, I see no one more qualified than myself.”

“I second that,” Diyoza said with a nod, “Indra’s experienced and the people trust her to protect us.”

“But the people do not trust her to be a just leader,” said Father Titus. “I suggest Kane take Isaac’s place.”

Kane shook his head, “I couldn’t. The people chose me as their voice within the colony, not outside of it. How could I lead both a people and an army if I am not even trained for combat? Thank you, Father Titus, but I must decline.”

Titus knew Kane would refuse, but he had to offer his support to the representative anyway. Indra was the last person he wanted on the throne. He’d heard enough from Gaia to know that much. He turned to Dr.Griffin, who quickly shook her head, not even considering it. “Then let it be me. It’s time this colony looked to faith, and the church.”

Diyoza stifled a laugh, “Excuse me, Father, but you can’t be serious. The people want someone they can trust to defend them when the Infected or Scars come knocking on our gate, not a man who will pray and spray whatever holy liquid you’ve convinced yourself will purge our earth of demons on the enemy. I mean, can you even fire a gun without it knocking you on your ass?”

Indra turned to Diyoza, “Enough.” She then turned to the priest, “I understand why you would be hesitant to lend me your support, but we have been left with no choice. And with all due respect, I am not _asking_ that you elect me.” Indra then addressed the entire room, “I am letting you all know I will lead from now on. Your support will just make things easier for everyone."

The room fell quiet. Kane would not object until the people’s freedoms came under threat; to him, Isaac and Indra were one in the same, so he hardly cared which one of them held the reins. Abby knew Indra controlled Lexa, and Lexa controlled the rest of the Nightbloods, so she would not object either; her research regarding the Nightbloods was important, not to mention she had her hands full with the hospital already. Diyoza had already given Indra her support, and was simply waiting to help Indra reveal Lexa’s true nature. The father had no power outside the walls of his church, his objections were worthless, a man screaming into a void. 

“Now,” Indra began, “there will be some changes in the WLF. First off, I am announcing my reformation of the old prison building. The apartment complex will be used for what it was intended for: apartments. The new jail will be the motel on the far end of the colony. I bet you all are wondering who the apartments will house. Well, there’s something Isaac and I meant to tell you all before his untimely demise, God rest his soul.”

Indra motioned for Lexa to come stand next to her. Lexa quickly obliged. Indra gave Diyoza a nod, and Diyoza stepped outside of the meeting room, only to return with a live rat trapped within a glass case. It was at this moment that Abby realized that Indra intended to show the community leaders what her adopted daughter truly was.

Diyoza set the glass case down on the table in front of where Indra had been sitting. Indra opened the case and lifted the rat out, holding it out in front of Lexa. 

Lexa’s pupils dilated, black enveloping green. Her jaw began to click. Panicked squeals escaped the rat as it began to resist Indra’s grasp. Teeth lunged at grey fur. Indra quickly withdrew her hand. Blood ran down the girl’s chin. In mere seconds, the rat was gone. 

Kane and Titus looked at the spectacle in pure horror, unable to speak. Abby had seen the second generation Infected children feed enough times to become desensitized to it, and Diyoza watched fully infected humans devour healthy ones almost on a daily basis, so their reaction was not dramatic in the slightest. 

Indra handed Lexa a napkin to wipe the blood away before it dried. She then turned to the table to finish her address, “Lexa here is a ‘Second Generation Infected’, meaning she is half human and half Infected. There are currently 33 second generation Infected, or Nightbloods, being housed in the top floor of the apartment complex. These children are created when pregnant women come in contact with the virus during their second or third trimester. The virus attacks the fetus, rather than the woman. Before you ask, Infections during the first trimester result in both the woman and fetus dying. When it is time for the child to be born, the child will eat its way out of its mother. Because the fungus is introduced during development, it aids in development, so these children are born as the equivalent of a two-year old normal, human child. It’s a form of self-preservation, as the children couldn’t possibly survive as infants without a mother. As for the physical aspects of the infection, the fungus wraps around the child’s brain and cannot be observed from the outside. The severity of the infection depends on what stage of development the fetus was introduced to the virus. They are also born with certain abilities: speed, a heightened sense of smell, the ability to go minutes without breathing because the fungus metabolizes their oxygen for them, and a heightened sense of hearing, which makes them excellent hunters. Dr.Griffin is in the process of putting the finishing touches on a serum, ‘Keryon’, which will allow the Nightbloods to be amongst humans without getting... _hungry._ ”

Titus raised a quivering finger to point at Lexa, “I-is she o-on i-it?”

“No.” Indra said plainly and Titus practically soaked his pants. “Lexa is special. The Nightbloods held by the WLF are young and have a lot to learn about controlling themselves. Luckily, they have Lexa to lead by example. She is in complete control...if she is kept fed on a regular basis.” Indra clapped her hands together, ending her explanation of the Nightbloods. “Now, I plan to go public with this. I understand that the people will need time to process, but if we can convince them that the Nightbloods are beneficial to us, the transition will be swift and uncomplicated. Kane, I trust I can count on your support?”

Kane was essential to Indra’s plan. She could go on and on about how the Nightbloods were safe and would help win any war, but the people would never truly accept it if Kane was not on board. 

Kane, however, was still at a loss for words. _She ate the fucking rat,_ he thought to himself incredulously. He shook his head. “I can’t. I won’t. I won’t tell these people they are safe when I don’t even believe it. These _things_ are dangerous! One slip up, one bite, and we could all end up Infected.”

“They can’t turn people, Marcus.” Abby welcomes herself into the discussion, “They’re hunters, not breeders.”

Kane looked at Indra, then Abby, and back at Indra. How had he not known about this? He’d been told by Isaac that the WLF was conducting research on the Infected, but this was not what he’d imagined. It would have been a lie if he said he was not afraid. The Infected on the outside of the walls, who’d once been human, were relatively easy to neutralize, and their sight had often left them, but these children could blend in as human and kill a man twice their size, all without ever having said a word. But did that not also mean that it would be better for the WLF to be their ally? And would the people not feel safer knowing these super-humans were protecting them and their home? Kane’s thoughts raced as he attempted to rationalize the situation. As Indra had put it, Kane really did not have a choice, and he would have at least liked to support Indra in this with good intentions in mind. 

Finally, he sighed and nodded. “I suppose Isaac trusted you for a reason, and it's no secret that the people have faith in your ability, so if you think this is the best course of action, then I’m behind you.”

Titus can’t believe the scene that had been unfolding before him. _Monsters_. To whom he was referring to, Indra or Lexa, even he didn’t know. All he knew was that the Nightbloods were a threat, just like the regular Infected. “How can you all support this?! The demon may wear the face of a human, but that does not change its nature!” He looked to Kane and pointed an accusing finger, “The people trust you. By allowing this to stand, you betray that trust. And you-“ he pointed at Abby, “You’re a doctor for Christ’s sake!”

“Yes, I am a doctor, which is why I support this. The Keryon serum will-“

Titus laughed dryly, “All this talk of a serum that will come to our rescue, but I have not seen even a drop of it. What if it doesn’t work?”

Abby was not one to raise her voice or even argue with most, but she didn't necessarily enjoy her work being criticized by a heretic who valued tales over proven science. “It’ll work,” she said simply. Now, her and Indra just had to prove it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter wasn't going to be very long because it is a prologue, but I decided to make it like a regular chapter so I'd have more time to get ahead. I hope you all enjoyed it. Part 2 should come out on the 3rd (Just so I can have some time to enjoy the New Year). Also, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments :)


	2. Prologue: 2039, Pt. 2

Indra knew it was a difficult situation for everyone. Isaac was the one man everyone trusted, and he’d led them into a battle that left many Wolves dead. That meant that the people were mourning while growing untrusting of the WLF’s leadership. Indra didn’t know if she’d be able to get them to trust her, but she had to try, for their sake. 

Titus had continued to object to Indra’s takeover and plans for the future, but all he could really do was speak, and even that was limited, for if he spoke too much, he could be accused of treason and insubordination. For the most part, he was ignored by the other community leaders. They all had bigger things to worry about than his devout ramblings.

After the leaders met, there was a ceremony put together in an hour, where most of the WLF gathered at the field on the west end of the colony. There, Indra delivered the news of Isaac’s death, along with her plans to take over. The crowd accepted that rather quickly and moved to ask what would happen next. Indra spoke of having to heal after the grand loss that the WLF had suffered, but that the fallen soldiers would be honored with a victory soon enough. She promised to send teams to retrieve as many bodies as they could find, so that they could have proper burials. It was not the ideal situation, but it was the one they had all been dealt. One man, Charles Pike, had dared to speak up against Indra, saying that the WLF should not be so quick to trust her when blind trust in a leader was what led to the unsuccessful siege on the Seraphites in the first place. However, the crowd had ignored him because he was a known drunk. After the man had finally decided to be silent, Indra moved to the more difficult part of her address: Lexa and the Nightboods.

The people had been shocked, of course. Before their fears could get the better of them, though, Kane had stepped in and assured them that they would be perfectly safe. Still, uncertainty clung to the atmosphere. 

_The crowd calms as Kane finishes telling them the Nightbloods are not a threat. He turns around to face Indra, “You said she,” he motions towards Lexa, “is in complete control, yes?”_

_Indra nods and proudly pats Lexa on her shoulder, “She will only attack if I tell her to.”_

_Kane feels a hint of sympathy for the girl, it’s almost like she is a trained dog and nothing more, but he decides that is a problem for another day. Kane rolls up the sleeve of his jacket and takes a knife from his pocket, which startles Lexa. “It’s alright,” he quickly assures her and everyone watching, “I understand why many of you are afraid, but I will be the first to show you all that the Nightbloods are our allies.” Kane then runs the knife along his skin, a line of red following. He holds his forearm out in front of Lexa._

_The crowd holds their breath as they watch, expecting the girl to lose her composure and attack the Representative. But nothing happens. Instead, the girl removes a red scarf from around her neck and wraps it over his arm. “Kane, heal.”_

Indra had followed up the showcase by telling the people about Lexa’s abilities and then providing examples as to how they would aid in defeating any enemy the WLF encountered, human or otherwise. It was enough to put most of their fears aside for the moment. It was obvious that getting the people to fully accept the Nightbloods would take time, but it would happen. Indra would make sure of it.

__

Weeks passed and the winter guided the people into a new year. Indra had managed to get settled in Isaac’s old office and living quarters pretty well. Lexa and the other Nightbloods, however, had not felt the transition so much. Although the apartment complex had been reformed, their days still felt the exact same as they had under Isaac’s leadership because Abby had not yet finished the Keryon serum.

The Nightbloods were beginning to grow impatient, but Lexa did her best to assure them that their time would come soon enough, they just had to prepare to live amongst humans in the meantime. Lexa had spent much of this time learning English, as she knew she’d be speaking a lot more once the Keryon serum was finished. It had been a frustrating process in the beginning, as she had only herself to practice with. Just when she thought she’d gotten something down, she’d proudly present it to Indra, who would tell her she was “pronouncing it wrong” or had outright misunderstood the grammar rule. Luckily, though, some of her Nightblood counterparts saw her struggle and decided to help their unofficial leader. A young girl with blonde hair, Josephine Lightbourne, or ‘Test Subject #001’; a boy with ochre brown skin and a pretty nose, Ryker Desai, or ‘Test Subject #004’; a girl with short, curly hair and russet skin, Melanie Justineau, or ‘Test Subject #022’; a girl with midnight black skin, Costia Woods, or ‘Test Subject #019’; and a girl with golden brown hair and hollow cheeks, Anya Woods, or ‘Test Subject #018’. Anya and Lexa had been the closest, as they shared a last name. Of course, those were not their given names; ‘Woods’ was just the last name given to any Nightblood whose parents the WLF couldn’t track down. The orphan’s last name. Anya knew this, and Lexa understood it well enough, but that didn’t stop them from claiming to be sisters. The third girl bearing the last name, Costia, however, claimed to be Lexa’s wife, and she found it flattering. 

Lexa and her ‘inner circle’, a term she’d overheard from Indra and decided to steal, were practicing Lexa’s introduction using her name, and three of her favorite things.

“Hell-o, my name is Lexa Woods, from the W-L-F. Favor-ite things are: Indra, grapes, and music.” Lexa knew she hadn’t said it perfectly, but she’d learnt not to get frustrated. She’d get it eventually.

Her friends gave her smiles of encouragement. “Good job, Lex.”; “You’re getting a lot better!”; “That one sounded good!”

Lexa nodded and thanked them. “Could be gooder- No, _better._ ”

Anya patted Lexa’s back, “You’ll get it, Lex. You’re almost there already! Listen, when you say ‘hello’, just let it roll off your tongue, alright? And make sure to say ‘ _my_ favorite things are’.” Lexa nodded appreciatively.

The room was split at the ¾ mark. The barrier consisted of a wall, with a window across the center, and a steel door at the far end of it. The larger area was for the Nightbloods, the other was for Abby and her team to observe the children. The door to the area reserved for Dr.Griffin suddenly opened, drawing the attention of all 33 children. Indra walked in, accompanied by Abby, who held a suitcase.

The children began to grow excited, assuming they were getting an extra meal. Lexa stood up and addressed them, “Calm.” They all complied rather quickly.

Indra leaned into the intercom’s microphone, “Lexa, come.”

Lexa approached the door and waited for it to buzz. Once it did, she opened it and stepped into the observation area. She looked up at the two women, her back straight and chin high once more. 

Indra smiled and waved her hand, telling Lexa it was okay to let her posture slip away. “Lexa, Dr.Griffin has something for you.”

She’d been taught not to overreact or show too much emotion at any time to ensure people would not be startled by her behavior. Still, she was excited to see what gift the doctor bore. Lexa turned to Abby with curiosity in her eyes and an innocent smile.

Abby smiled at the young girl before her, noting how Lexa had gone from being shy and reserved to a well-mannered young woman in only a year. She had no doubt in her mind that the girl would grow into a powerful leader, and what she was about to say would be the first step in that direction. “We’ve spoken about the Keryon serum, yes?”

Lexa nodded, “Yes, ma’am.”

“Well,” Abby continued, “We’ve finished analyzing the results from the last test trial and it seems we’ve come out at a 99% success rate-“

“I’m sore-y to interrupt, but should be 100, no?” Lexa asked with a brow raised. If the serum was what stood between the safety of both humans and Nightbloods and a tragedy, then it had to be perfect.

Abby tried to figure out what the best way to explain the situation to a girl who hardly spoke English was. “Yes, ideally it would be at 100%, but every Nightblood’s body is different, so they need different amounts of the serum. If the amount is not just right for them, then it won’t work as well as it should, hence the 99% success rate. Make sense?”

Lexa understood well enough, and she trusted Abby and her team not to make mistakes with the serum, so a 99% would have to suffice. The only question left unanswered was when the serum would begin to be administered to the children. “Yes. When will we get it?”

Abby smiled at the girl’s eagerness and laid her suitcase next to the intercom. She opened it to reveal 3 rows of vials, each row containing 11, along with a box of needles, syringes, and sanitizing wipes. “Now. Would you like to go first?” Lexa nodded excitedly. Abby nodded and picked up a vial marked ‘#023’. She then prepared the syringe.

_Lexa can feel the eyes of the Nightbloods and Indra on her, and she is praying that this is not another disappointment. Abby brings a sanitizing wipe over her skin to prevent any infection. Then the needle comes. Lexa holds her breath as the needle pierces her skin and releases the serum into her bloodstream._

_For a moment, she feels nothing. Then, like a wave washing over her, she feels a part of her strength leave her for a moment, forcing her to stumble back. Indra catches her, protecting her from a fall. Lexa shakes her head as if she is shaking off the strange sensation. “Feels weak,” she tells Abby._

_Abby nods as she discards the needle and vial, “That’s to be expected. The serum draws the attention of the virus by trying to force your body to sleep. Instead of the virus encouraging feeding, it is focusing on keeping you awake. You’ll stop feeling the side effects in a few minutes, but your hunger will subside for a little over a day, more if you feed.”_

_Lexa nods and turns to face the Nightbloods through the glass. She smiles and they all cheer with excitement._

_After Abby prepares the next few dosages, the Nightbloods line up to receive their first dose of freedom._

When all the Nightbloods had finished being injected with the Keryon Serum, Indra told them all that she had announcements to make. They sat in neat rows; Lexa, Indra, and Abby stood before them. Indra smiled at the group of future soldiers, proud of how the WLF had finally realized their true potential.

“I realize this is a day you have all been waiting for, the day you are all welcomed into society as equals and as a symbol of a better future for the WLF. You all will bring about change our people have never even imagined. I believe that warrants a reward, so tonight you will all be assigned an apartment for yourselves. Make no mistake, you are all at least 14, so I expect every single apartment to be kept clean and organized at all times. Another change you will see is the commencement of our training program tomorrow morning at 8:00 A.M. During this program, you all will be trained in ranged, as well as hand-to-hand, combat and you will learn basic medical and survivalist skills. At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, you all will be free to wander the colony, but you must be back here at 10:00 P.M., as that is your curfew. In order to enforce this curfew, doors will be locked and a guard will go around the floor to make sure everyone is accounted for. Do not take this as an infringement on your newfound freedom, it is simply a precaution to make sure everyone remains safe, I’m sure you all know what would happen if one of you killed a member of the WLF.”

 _Death._ Lexa, and every other Nightblood, thought to themselves. 

Indra could see the grimness on their faces, and she didn’t want her speech to end that way because it felt like a threat, and this was meant to be a good day of welcoming the future, so she moved onto her last set of news. “Now, for my last announcement. You will no longer be referred to as ‘test subjects’, you are all soldiers now; you’re Wolves... of the Doskola Platoon. To lead you all, I’ve chosen a Nightblood I believe will guide you to greatness,” Indra turned to Lexa with a proud smile, “ _Captain_ Lexa Woods.”

Lexa had known she’d be chosen as the leader of the platoon when the time came, but when it had actually happened, she could hardly contain her excitement. Her smile had grown so big, she was afraid her cheeks would begin to tear. It was the beginning of a new future, a future where the Nightbloods were no longer an underground research program or urban legend, but true members of society. Lexa couldn’t wait to live the new life Indra had given her.

—

Later on that night, around 8:00P.M., the Nightbloods were all settled into their respective rooms. The housing was based on the level of control each Nightblood had; the low risk Nightbloods got the first floor, the moderate risk Nightbloods got the 4th floor, and the high risk Nightbloods were placed in the 8th floor, below the observation area. Of course, because there were only 33 of them, no floor was full. Lexa, and her friends, apart from Ryker, were placed on the first floor, as they were deemed the least dangerous. Lexa got the first room, Melanie got the one next to hers, and Costia got the one next to Melanie’s. Josephine was given the first apartment on the other side of the hall, and Anya’s was right next door. Between the entrance and Lexa’s apartment, though, there was a small office. Inside, there was a control panel, which could lock each apartment door individually, or all at once. Lexa had been told that, eventually, she’d be responsible for it, but for now, a Wolf from the human army would be assigned to it. There were a lot of ‘later on’, ‘eventually’, and ‘maybe’s floating around, but Lexa was excited to find out what the future held.

She had her friends, a new title, and a purpose. What could possibly go wrong?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good news: This is the end of the PROLOGUE. The next chapter will kick off in 2049 when Lexa is 25.  
> Note: Obviously, 10 years is a long time, so a lot changed, but these changes will be revealed/alluded to as the story progresses. The prologue just served to set the foundation of how things shifted from the end of TLOU2 to this story.
> 
> Bad news: My school break is ending in a few days, so I’ll be a bit busy, so, please, be patient. I am ahead on my writing, though! :)
> 
> And lastly, I hope you are all enjoying the New Year!


	3. The Beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2049: The Beginning

The cold weather, among other things, had hit the WLF hard. The people were hungry and on edge. Their anxieties had trickled down onto Lexa, as she worried for their welfare, but she could not let that distract her much. Indra would take care of things, like she always did. All Lexa had to do was stand beside her with an army ready. Fortunately, that was something Lexa excelled at. Over the years, the Nightblood training program had relatively been a success, even as more Nightbloods joined their ranks (their number reaching 40 this year), and they had Lexa to thank for it all.

Lexa had been the only Nightblood trained in combat before the program began, which meant she had to take on the role of a teacher for her peers. This was easy enough, as the Nightbloods all respected her. However, Lexa would be lying if she said she wasn’t a bit bored. It seemed like the Nightbloods would train day after day, but rarely see a fight. She knew the people of the WLF were still waiting for the day the Seraphites would be wiped out after the war 10 years prior, and Lexa wanted to deliver it. Unfortunately, Indra refused to give the order, insisting she would not go to war with so many uncertainties flying around; for now, all Lexa could do was train and teach. And that is all she _would_ do.

“Alright, we’re going to pair up for a few minutes before we’re done for the day,” Lexa instructs. The Nightbloods all scramble to find a pair until they’ve all found one, all but Melanie.

Melanie smiles at the Captain and she walks towards her, “Looks like you’re stuck with me again, Lex.”

“Looks like it.” she grumbles in response. Lexa moves to a defense stance and motions for Melanie to follow along.

Melanie positions herself in front of Lexa, ready to attack. “Cheer up, Captain. I’ll go easy on you.”

Lexa barely gets to grin at the joke before Melanie swings at her with full-force. She’s fast, but Lexa’s faster. Lexa quickly ducks, avoiding the jab. She swings her arm against the back of The arm Melanie used to attack and extends it onto Melanie’s back, forcing her down. Lexa then puts her arm around Melanie’s throat. The action leaves Melanie breathless against Lexa’s grasp. 

Lexa’s about to let go when she smells it. The arousal coming from Melanie, it smells of something primal and aggressive. She quickly releases her hold on the girl and stands. “Stop that.”

Melanie brushes herself off and raises a brow at Lexa, “Stop what?”

Lexa puts her hands on her hips and furrows her brows, about to scold Melanie, “You know wh-“ The door to the training room opens and Lexa quickly turns her head in its direction. In walks Abby, accompanied by Lincoln and a younger girl. Lexa turns her attention back to Melanie for a brief moment, “I must attend to Dr.Griffin... Go practice with Josephine and Ryker, I’ll be back in a second.” She’s grateful for the interruption. Melanie’s advances were becoming too much.

Lexa walks over to the three guests. Lincoln is the first to greet her. “Hey, Lex!” He hugs her tightly, and Lexa let’s him.

Lincoln Forst had joined Abby’s Nightblood Research Program 5 years ago. At that time, he was only 18, but he’d shown tremendous promise, and, honestly, the WLF was short on medically skilled personnel, so Abby had no choice. However, he’d quickly become close to Lexa Woods, a feat few had achieved. That, along with his work at the hospital building alongside Abby, led to him becoming a nurse at the age of 20, proving himself to be a great asset. Lincoln is extremely talented, but he is also caring and kind, something Lexa appreciates and admires. As a matter of fact, it is those qualities which earned him a spot as Lexa’s closest _human_ friend.

Lexa hugs Lincoln back. “It’s good to see you, man.” She pulls away and smiles at Abby, and then her eyes move to the younger girl, and they stay there longer than Lexa intends for them to. The girl has blonde, wavy hair that only reaches her shoulders, but it frames her face nicely. Clarke’s eyes look like the sky on a cloudless day, like a gateway to the heavens, and her hair is the golden gates. They’re the color Lexa hopes the ocean is (she’d never seen it in person). _I’m staring, aren’t I?_ She realizes. After a moment, Lexa snaps out of her trance and finally greets the two women, “Hello, what can I do for you?”

Abby puts her hand on the girl’s shoulder and smiles proudly, “Well, Captain, I just wanted to introduce you to the new addition to the Nightblood Research Program.”

Clarke looks at the Captain and smiles. _God, no one told me she was this beautiful,_ she thinks to herself. The WLF colony has thousands of inhabitants, so no one truly knows everyone, but there are a few famous names here and there. Chief among them are Indra Seya, of course, and Lexa Woods, the ‘Commander’. Lexa’s official title is Captain, but for some reason, some way, she’d also gained the nickname Commander around the colony. Clarke had thought it silly when she’d first heard about it, but now, standing before the woman, she understands it perfectly; Lexa’s power seems to radiate out of her. Another thing she’d heard was that the Commander is exceptionally beautiful. Clarke had questioned the validity of the rumor, thinking it was probably the flattery people give to anyone with power, but it was quickly proven correct. Her irises are a light shade of green, somewhere between an ocean and forest, but as they near her pupils, they become a field of grass above fertile ground. Looking into her eyes feels like plunging yourself into the center of the earth, darkness at the center until the fire she invokes lets you see again. Her lips are smooth and the color of rose buds, and they look as if they were sculpted for a marble statue.

“Hi, I’m Clarke-“

“Clarke Griffin”, Lexa interrupts with a smile of admiration, “I know. I read your August report.” The report, which argued that the WLF was too isolationist considering the current state of the world, had been unpopular amongst the people, even earning Clarke a harsh-talking to from Indra. Lexa, however, found it brilliant, and while she would never reveal that fact to Indra, it was her honest truth. The two girls stare at each other, the smiles never leave their faces. After a moment, Lexa speaks again, “I-I’m Lexa, Lexa Woods. Captain of the Doskola Platoon. It’s nice to meet you.”

“Likewise, Captain.” And it truly is.

Abby is pleased to see that the two girls seem to have gotten a good first impression. She loves Clarke, but she recognizes that her daughter has a tendency to unconsciously overstep at times, something that a private and reserved person, such as the Captain, never appreciates. So, a good first impression is to be celebrated, especially with the job Clarke has been called to fill. “Clarke here is a psychiatrist. Right now, she is studying behavioral patterns and the effects that Nightbloods’...” she stammers, trying to find the right word, “ _Unique upbringings_ have on their psyche.”

“And, I wanted to revolve it around you.” Clarke adds. She knows her mother will probably scold her for being _too direct_ later, but she’s too excited to tip-toe around the subject any longer.

The idea of the Nightbloods being understood on a level deeper than a biological basis intrigues Lexa. She is well aware that while the people have generally accepted the Nightbloods as part of their society over the years, many Wolves see the Nightbloods as monsters, ticking time-bombs, or just inhuman. She understands why they hold those beliefs, but, still, she wishes it were different. Clarke’s research could do a lot to help improve relations between the people of the WLF and the Nightbloods. Unfortunately, Lexa has her doubts. Chief among them is that the research would revolve around her, meaning she’d have to allow the psychiatrist to see and analyze every part of herself, the parts she holds with pride, and the parts she hides from the world.

Lincoln can see the Captain working through her hesitations in her head, and he fears she will deny the Griffins’ request because she _truly_ hates opening up, but he knows how valuable her mind can be. “Listen, Lex, I know it doesn’t sound like your thing, but this is important...to all of us. You could be the change you always talk about, the change they need,” he motions towards the group of Nightbloods behind her.

Lexa looks at Lincoln, then to the Griffins, back to Lincoln, and finally back to the Griffins. They all stare with anticipation, and the biggest puppy eyes she’s ever seen. How could she say no? “I suppose, for the benefit of both the colony and the Nightbloods, I could find time to speak with Ms.Griffin.” Lexa figures both Lincoln and Abby have done everything possible to earn her trust, and they seem to trust in Clarke, so, therefore, Lexa has no reason to doubt Clarke either. Still, the thought of a stranger psychoanalyzing her leaves a sour feeling in her stomach. 

The Griffins and Lincoln are quick to excuse themselves after gaining Lexa’s approval, as Abby expresses that they are very busy. As they leave, Clarke can’t help but glance back at the Captain, and the fact that Lexa is there to meet her gaze gives her stomach a whirl.

A buzzer briefly goes off, signaling the end of the training session. The Nightbloods begin to pack their things and head for the door. Lexa sees her three friends at the corner of the room and approaches them.

Josephine greets the Commander with a smirk, no doubt about to make a joke. “Don’t tell us you’ve come down with the virus,” she says, alluding to the doctor’s visit.

_How predictable,_ Lexa thinks to herself as she rolls her eyes. Still, she gives Josephine a small laugh just to make the blonde feel good about herself. “Unfortunately you’ll be stuck with me for a little while longer, Lightbourne.”

“What’d they want?” Melanie asks, doing her best to sound like she’s only asking out of politeness and not curiosity.

“Dr.Griffin’s inducted a psychiatrist, her daughter, into the research program to lead a study on our minds, and she intends to revolve her research on me.”

“Like therapy or something?” Ryker asks in all his himbo glory. 

Josephine rolls her eyes at the boy, “That’s her business, Ryker.” Ryker pouts in response, their playful banter always seems to end that way.

“No,” Lexa says as she pats Ryker’s shoulder with compassion. “I’m actually not sure what it’ll be yet. 

_You’ve signed up to be a guinea pig again,_ Melanie remarks in her head, but she won't dare to say it aloud. Lexa does not react well to being accused of being merely a puppet for the WLF. Sure, it’s partly true, but Lexa’s loyalties lie with Indra, and Indra is the WLF, so what choice does the Captain have? 

Instead, Melanie decides to change the subject. “Right, well, hopefully you’ll fill us in when you find out. Anyway, we still on for tonight?”

The group had planned to hang out that night, since they wouldn’t be busy the next day. However, Josephine has a tendency to show up either late or not at all whenever they make plans, which leads to Ryker being absent as well, as he only goes wherever Josephine leads him. Lexa, on the other hand, is very punctual. If she said she’d be there, she’d be there 10 minutes beforehand. The only problem with the Commander is that she always seems to want to be somewhere else. Is that often the case? Maybe. The truth is that she loves her friends and spending time with them, but she loves being alone more, she always has. 

Lexa shrugs as she nods, “Sure.”

Melanie then turns to Josephine and Ryker, who stand so close to each other they almost look like Siamese twins, “What about you guys?”

Josephine looks at Ryker, almost as if asking: _Should we go?_ Ryker nods, and Josephine turns back to Melanie, “We’ll be there.”

Lexa quickly grabs her bag from the wall behind Melanie and swings it over her shoulder. “Alright, I’ll see you guys then.”

“What’s the rush?” Josephine asks, looking for a chance to hear some gossip.

“I have to go see Indra.”

—

Lexa makes her way into the HQ building and up the stairs until she reaches Indra’s door. She can hear Indra speaking with someone, so she decides to knock. Lexa knows Indra wouldn’t mind her hearing anything, as Indra is open about anything Lexa happens to ask about, but she knocks anyway. 

“Come in, Lexa,” Indra says from inside the office. How she knows it is Lexa standing outside the door, Lexa can’t possibly guess; Indra is a woman of many wonders.

Lexa steps in and closes the door behind her. Indra’s guest is the first to greet her, “Nice to see you again, Captain.” Her tone suggests otherwise, but Lexa chooses to ignore it.

Lexa smiles, trying to maintain a professional attitude. “Likewise, Colonel Blake.” Her tone also suggests otherwise.

Octavia Blake is the leader of the WLF’s battalion, and one of Indra’s closest allies, next to Lexa, of course. She’d joined the WLF when she was 8 years old, about 16 years ago with her father and her older brother, Bellamy. She joined the WLF’s military when she was 18, after the death of her father, and Indra took her under her wing for some reason. She is also Lincoln’s girlfriend of 4 years, something Lexa hardly understands because they are polar opposites, but they seem to make each other happy. That’s all Lexa knows about her frenemy.

The little power play between the two girls is obvious to Indra, for it has been going on for 5 years. Usually, Lexa is mature enough to ignore Octavia’s snarky remarks and obvious back-handed compliments, but there had been times when she was sure they would kill each other; Indra has learned not to let their encounters escalate. 

“Octavia,” Indra begins, not looking up from some paperwork on her desk, “Could you leave us for a moment?” It’s more of a command than a request, and Octavia knows better than to pick a fight with Indra, so she complies rather quickly and scurries out of the room. Once the door clicks shut, Indra looks up at Lexa and motions for her to sit down on the chair across her desk. “Sit, dear.”

Lexa takes a seat and points towards the door behind her with her thumb, “Is Blake alright?” Lexa only asks because she knows Indra cares about Octavia, and if Octavia is stressed about something, then that means Indra must be stressed as well, and Lexa won’t have that. 

Indra rolls her eyes and waves her hand in the air, as if dismissing Octavia’s feelings, “She’s still fighting with the brother, it’ll pass...but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. A lot of our supply trucks and squads have been attacked near the southwest border, by the subway station. I need you and your team to go find out how the Seraphites are getting our Wolves before our Wolves see them, and make sure it doesn’t happen anymore. You leave at midnight.”

“The southwest border? But that’s practically open land. How the hell are we not spotting them?”

“Jaha’s a pain and a psychopath, but not an idiot. He’s smart, he knows how to get around us.” Indra explains like it’s the simplest thing in the world. 

It was true. Thelonious Jaha had once been a respected man within the WLF, as he had helped Isaac Dixon, and the two founders of the WLF: Emma and Jason Patterson rise against FEDRA and claim the Washington region as WLF territory. He was a skilled engineer and had a way of taming a crowd with only a few words. His skills had served him well in the WLF. However, all of that changed when he defected and joined the Seraphites at the beginning of the year, quickly becoming their leader with the promise of saving the human race. The only trace of him within the colony is the hate the people hold against him, and his son, Wells, who is being held in the jail.

Lexa had known the man before he defected. He was kind, and encouraging, but cold when he needed to be; everything that a leader should be. When he defected, she’d greatly been surprised, as it seemed to have happened out of nowhere, but it was not the first time Lexa had seen a trusted ally become an unlikely defector. 

“So what kind of smart man leaves the WLF for the Seraphites?” Lexa asks, more as a judgement on Jaha than an actual question. Indra, however, darts her eyes to Lexa before quickly averting them to the paperwork on her desk. Lexa knows what that means. Indra isn’t telling her everything; Indra would never lie, but she’d certainly withhold the truth at times. “You know something, don’t you?”

Indra pretends to be focused on the work before her as she shakes her head, “It doesn’t concern you, Lexa.”

_In other words, ‘Butt out.’_ But Lexa won’t let it go that easily. “If I am to go to war with this man, I’d like to know why he is not instead my ally. People don’t defect for no reason, Indra, so what was his? Tell me: what would compel a man, who once led a revolution for our people, to abandon his life and family for deranged heretics.”

Indra sighs. She figures if she is to tell anyone, it should be Lexa; it’s not like she can say no to the girl anyway, and so, she begins to recount the creation of their current enemy.

_  
It’s a chilly February morning when Indra hears a knock at her door. She grumbles to herself as she wonders what idiotic Wolf could be interrupting her peace and quiet this early. She makes her way to the door and opens it begrudgingly._

_Thelonious smiles at the woman as he raises a bottle next to his head. “I come bearing gifts, my friend.”_

_It’s a nice turn of events. Indra chuckles as she welcomes her longtime friend inside her office. It has been ages since she’s had a nice drink, and Thelonious always makes a great drinking partner. “It’s a bit early, don’t you think?” She jokes._

_Thelonious sits down in the chair across Indra’s desk and sets the bottle down. He crosses his legs and leans back, always the perfect mix of proper and casual, “We’re at the end of times! I think we deserve a drink to start the day.”_

_She begins to walk towards her seat at the desk, stopping by a cupboard to get a pair of glasses. “That we are.” She sits down and motions for Thelonious to open the bottle._

_“So,” He begins as he pours Indra a drink, “How are things?”_

_Indra sighs as she waits for Thelonious to pour his own drink, not wanting to get started without him. “Almost 10 years I’ve been at this desk, and you still ask me that. As good as can be, I suppose.”_

_“Well, you know I worry for you. Isaac certainly had a difficult time, and while I don't doubt your ability, it’s a hard job to fill.” Indra can tell his concern is genuine, and she is thankful for the true friend she’s found in him._

_“A job you would’ve filled better, no doubt.” Indra says. She has always wondered how she’d managed to take over when the people trusted Thelonious more than her, but it was probably the fact that she had the military in her pocket that won her the seat at the top._

_Thelonious quickly shakes his head, “No, absolutely not! God may have gifted me a silver tongue, but He gave you courage. You, my friend, make our people strong when they need it most, and lead us when we lose our way. That is something I could never do, something even Isaac failed at.”_

_Indra smiles, and for the first time in a very long time, it’s genuine. “Thank you, Thelonious. Though, Isaac hardly failed. He cared, and he did it well. He simply let the fight become more important than the consequence, but that is not weakness, that- that is the sign of a true heart...”_

_Thelonious raises his glass, “Well, then, let us drink in his proud memory. To Isaac.”_

_Indra raises her glass in return and brings the rim against Thelonious’. “To Isaac.”_

_The pair both swallow the liquid quickly and share a smile afterwards. However, Thelonious’ joyful smile quickly turns into a dejected frown. “It’s a shame what happened to him, though. Anderson is the last person I would have expected to defect, much less aid Isaac’s killer.”_

_Indra sighs at the memory, as it had truly been a tragedy. “The girl had come into the WLF with a mission, and she left with the same one. She never stopped looking to avenge her father. She too let the fight become more important than the consequence.”_

_When Abby Anderson had been a part of the WLF, Thelonious had not gotten the chance to know her well. All he knows about her is that she’d belonged to a militia group, the Fireflies, before joining the WLF. All this time, he had assumed she had been radicalized by the Seraphites, or coerced into helping them, but now, he learns she actually had a purpose and reason. It intrigues him. And so, he decides he’ll find out more about her, perhaps it will give him the peace of mind he’s been searching for for 10 years. Unfortunately, the only way to do that is to access her personal file from Indra’s cabinet. He knows it is wrong to sneak and snoop, but his curiosity only grows larger by the minute. Surely Indra won’t mind so much, right?_

_After about an hour of talking, Thelonious says his goodbye and leaves Indra to her business. He waits until she leaves her office to make his way inside, unseen. Once there, he begins to go through every cabinet he can find. Eventually, he comes to one that is locked. He quickly finds the key inside her desk, however. It must be his lucky day. He unlocks the cabinet and finds numerous files inside. Of course, there is not a file for every member of the WLF, only the members worth noting. They are in alphabetical order, so he quickly finds a file marked with a red tab, ‘Abigail Anderson: Authorized personnel ONLY’ towards the beginning. He flips through it and skims past details he finds irrelevant. And then his eyes land on ‘Family history: CLASSIFIED’  
  
_

_‘Father: (Doctor) Gerald Anderson_

_Occupation(s)/Affiliation(s): Surgeon - Fireflies Militia_

_Status: Deceased - Murdered by Joel Miller (04/34)_

_Notes: Was researching a cure for CBI, found a willing, human, test subject he believed showed promise, but was killed before successfully extracting a cure.’_

_“A cure…” Thelonious whispers to himself, and he almost can’t believe it. He glances back to the cabinet and notices something. The files belonging to Nightbloods are all grey, while the human files are all manilla. However, one grey file is marked with the same red tab next to the name tag as Abby’s: ‘Melanie Justineau - #022: Authorized personnel ONLY’_

_He wonders: what could possibly make a Nightblood more important than her captain? His curiosity gets the better of him as he slides out the file._

_His eyes scan the file until they land upon a section with the same red tab on the cover attached to it. ‘History: CLASSIFIED’_

_‘Occupation(s)/Affiliation(s): Test Subject - Hotel Echo military base, Britain (Former)_

_Justineau, among other 2nd Generation children were held under the supervision of Sgt. Eddie Parks and Dr. Caroline Caldwell. Caldwell was in the process of researching a cure from the 2nd Generation before the military base was overrun by a mob of Infected, Justineau, as well as…’_

_Thelonious stands there, almost unable to move, dumbfounded- no, appalled. Two potential cure sources, one of them sitting in his home, and Indra has never mentioned either of them. He’s lost so many to the virus, to the world the virus created; his wife, his family, his friends- Isaac, and Indra could’ve put an end to it. He trusted her, and she is keeping this secret from him and his people. His world seems to implode right before his eyes._

_He hears the door open, but can’t bring himself to turn around. Indra stands at the doorway, immediately noticing the two files in his hands. “Thelonious- I-“_

_“You could’ve saved us.”_

_“It’s not what you th-“_

_“Isn’t it?!” He roars as he holds up the files and turns around, “These speak of a cure! A way to end this demon virus! And yet you’ve hidden them away- do you have any idea how many lives you could’ve saved?!”_

_Indra understands his anger, she’d felt it, too, but he too would have to accept reality. She speaks calmly, not wanting to escalate the situation, “They speak of the possibility of a cure, Thelonious. They’re theories, completely unfounded theories.”_

_“Theories yet to be proven false!”_

_“I will not sacrifice the lives of the Nightbloods for a mere possibility- a theory.” What she really means, is that she won’t sacrifice Lexa. She knows that if the WLF moves forward with Dr.Caldwell’s theory, then there are two possibilities. One: the people lead a witch-hunt against Lexa because she seems to be the most powerful Nightblood; two: Lexa sacrifices herself so that none of her own will have to. Either way, the girl she’d come to think of as her daughter would die. And she would never, could never allow that to happen._

That night, Thelonious left the WLF and never returned. It wasn’t until months later that Indra found out he’d become the Seraphites’ leader, promising them a cure. Luckily, the people labelled him mad when they heard that, so Indra didn’t have to deal with any chaos. Still, the loss of her friend was vexing.

“-and if losing Jaha wasn’t bad enough, Pike got back on his bullshit about me running the WLF into the ground and started recruiting again. One headache after another.”

“Indra, we must find the cure, no matter what it takes. We could restore the world! If you’re worried about the Nightbloods, then let it be me-“

Just as Indra had predicted: the young commander would run towards death for her people. It is admirable, and Indra is proud that Lexa has turned out selfless, loyal, and brave, but it is times like these when Indra wishes Lexa was more like Octavia; loyal and driven, but determined to survive. Indra shakes her head, “Out of the question. We know nothing about Dr.Caldwell’s theory, her research- nothing. We can’t even be certain that what Melanie told us was completely accurate, she was only a child when she left the base.” Indra now took on a more melancholic tone, “I won’t lose you to a maybe, Lexa. God knows I am fond of both Gaia and Octavia, but...you- you- I-“ The words lose themselves. As much as Indra means them, she can’t bring herself to say them. 

Lexa stands up and walks around the desk. She hugs Indra from above. “I know. I love you, too.” Lexa is not the affectionate type, either, but she found she can be anything for Indra; a soldier, daughter, or confidante. “If you feel it best to go on as if we know nothing, then I’m behind you. I always will be.”

And that was where they left it. 

—

Lexa leaves Indra’s office around 4:00PM, and she doesn’t have any plans for the day apart from meeting her friends at 7, so she heads for the field. It is usually empty on weekdays, which Lexa takes advantage of. The field is rather large, and sitting in the middle of it almost feels like being outside of the colony’s walls. It reminds Lexa of a lot of things: her childhood, Indra, her friends, and Costia. Everything she’s grown to love, left uninterrupted by the chaos of the world. The field is happy. The field is peace. 

The hours seem to pass by like seconds and before she knows it, the sun is down. Lexa glances down at her watch and sees it’s a quarter until 7. She gets up, brushes herself off, and begins her walk home.

Lexa walks into her apartment. She’s surprised to find her three friends on her couch already. _No, I’m surprised to see Josephine is actually here._ Her friends all welcome her as she steps closer to them. “It’s nice to see you all as well. Unfortunately, I have some bad news.”

Josephine shakes her head exaggeratedly, “Leave it to Lexa to be a buzzkill.”

Ryker playfully pushes Josephine, “Shhh! Let her finish.”

Lexa pretends to smack Josephine’s head as she begins, “We have a mission tonight. We’re to leave at midnight.”

Her friends silently nod, but she can practically hear their groans and protests in their heads, except for Melanie, who loves going beyond the colony’s walls. Josephine on the other hand, hates even leaving her apartment.

Melanie looks at Lexa as she takes a drink from the cup in her hand. She holds eye contact longer than Lexa is comfortable with. Everything she does seems to be calculated at Lexa. “Well, go on and brief us then, Captain.”

Lexa looks away from Melanie, breaking the tension, and instead addresses the group as a whole. “We’re going near the southwest border, by the subway station. Indra says a lot of supply trucks and squads are being hit there, so the Serapahites must have a campsite nearby. We should get there around 3AM. It shouldn’t take us long, so pack lightly. Considering the fact that you all like to take your time preparing, I want you all packing by 11, meaning,” Lexa looks down at her watch: 7:10, “We get to hangout for about 3 hours.”

And so they did. Almost. All is going well until they sit around Lexa’s coffee table to play a board game. Melanie's turn comes up, and when she moves to move her game piece, she brushes against Lexa, making sure to linger long enough for Lexa to notice it’s purposeful.

Lexa scoots away from Melanie’s touch almost as soon as she realizes what Melanie is doing. She sees that Josephine and Ryker are entertained amongst themselves, so she takes the opportunity to whisper something to Melanie. “You really have to stop that.”

Melanie sits back down in her spot next to Lexa and grins, “I’ve truly no idea what it is you’re talking about, Captain.”

Lexa scoffs. Melanie loves to play games, and Lexa keeps falling for it. “You know exactly what I’m talking about.”

Josephine and Ryker look at them from across the coffee table. They glance towards each other, _It’s getting weird again, should we go?_ Ryker nods. Josephine is the first to stand. She claps her hands together, drawing Lexa and Melanie’s attention, “Well, Ryker and I had fun, but we should go before it gets too late and we forget to pack. So, uh,” she lifts Ryker to stand and pushes him towards the door, “We’ll see you guys when it’s time to go, yeah?” They don’t wait for a response before they’re out of the apartment.

Lexa sighs and begins to put up the abandoned board game. “Now look what you've done.”

“I didn’t tell them to leave. You’re the one making things weird.” Melanie knows that’s not true, not entirely at least. She is perfectly aware that her advances throw Lexa off, but, somehow, she can’t help herself.

“Me?” Lexa asks, almost as if Melanie has accused her of a crime. “So, it’s not weird when you brush up against me on purpose?”

“Since when is brushing up against you such a big deal? Are you forgetting that you kissed me?”

No, she hadn’t. In fact, she’d been trying to forget. The kiss had happened a month ago, on a night when they both felt alone and abandoned, as they reminisced on what had happened a year ago. They missed people they would probably never see again. Melanie was tied up in a million knots of grief, while Lexa was angry and confused. They were flailing their arms in the middle of an ocean. There was nothing for them to hold onto, except each other. So, Lexa kissed her. In the heat of the moment, in the heat of grief, and in anger, she kissed her friend. And she’d immediately regretted it afterwards.

“It meant nothing,” Lexa says coldly. And it’s the truth. She feels nothing for Melanie. Sure, the girl is beautiful. More beautiful than most women Lexa has ever seen, but there is simply no attraction. There never can be, and so, there never will be.

“Why can’t it?” Melanie almost sounds desperate. In a way, she is. She longs to be loved as she once was. She knows she misses the adoration and affection more than she misses her lover, she just won’t admit it.

“I won’t do that to Anya.”

Melanie scoffs, “Are you sure it’s about Anya?”

Lexa looks at Melanie with her brows furrowed. She isn’t truly angry, she’s just trying to convince them both that it _is_ about Anya. “Of course it’s about Anya. She was my best friend!” Lexa turns around, unable to look at Melanie any longer, afraid of what will come out.

“You know what I think?” She’s dangling a mouse before a cat.

“I don’t really care to, but I know you’ll tell me anyway.” And the cat prepares to pounce.

“I think it’s because of Costia. I think you kissed me because you were angry with her for leaving, and now, I think you love her too much to be with me.” Melanie’s game has succeeded.

The words land heavily on Lexa. The truth she has been so afraid to admit: it’s all about Costia. It always has been. Lexa has spent so much time running from that truth, afraid of what it would mean for her, but she couldn’t run from it anymore. It was out, surrounding her, suffocating her. The year prior, Costia and her arguing, Costia leaving- Lexa could remember it all so vividly.

_  
The pair are snuggled up on Lexa’s couch watching some film about vampires and werewolves, or something like that. Lexa hasn’t really been paying attention. She feels her girlfriend start to get up from the couch suddenly. Lexa doesn’t stop her as she asks, “Everything okay?”_

_Costia faces Lexa and smiles warmly. And it is the warmest smile Lexa has ever seen, she could live in Costia’s smile. “Yeah, I was just thinking we could,” she begins to smirk, “Do something more fun?”_

_Lexa chuckles as she shakes her head, “Tempting, but I can’t. Indra’s scheduled a meeting in the morning and she’ll kill me if I don’t make it on time.”_

_It’s always the same thing. Just when Lexa and Costia were fixing to spend time together as a couple, Lexa is called away by Indra. Costia hates it. As a matter of fact, she hates how the WLF treats the Nightbloods in general; as if the Nightbloods are nothing but dogs to be trained and only let out to attack. On most nights, Costia would keep her thoughts to herself, for Lexa will never agree, or even try to understand. How could she? Indra has conditioned the Captain to believe that the WLF are the Nightbloods’ saviors; that being a Wolf is the greatest honor one can receive. However, tonight, Costia can’t stop herself. “It’s really not fair the way she treats you, you know? Like you’re a pawn, like you only exist to do her bidding. We’re people, Lex. We may not be entirely the same, but that does not make us less than. And yet they treat us like monsters- like we’re the same as the Infected on the outside of these walls. All we’ve done is offer our lives, and they still treat us like shit.”_

_The words shock Lexa. She wonders to herself how Costia can think such a thing. Indra is kind, and, sure, the WLF isn’t perfect, but the Nightbloods are free. The safety procedures are merely a precaution, they don’t mean anything other than that. “Don’t talk like that. This is our home. Indra-“_

_Costia scoffs and flips her hair from her face in desperation because she simply cannot believe how brainwashed her girlfriend is. “Why do you defend her, Lex? Do you really not see what kind of person she truly is?”_

_“She’s cared for me. She saved me. She did all of this,” she waves her hands around her, referring to the apartment complex and everything the Nightbloods received after Isaac’s death, “for me. Maybe she has her flaws, but-“_

_“‘Maybe’?! She locks us up at night! She kills people!” Costia’s begun to raise her voice by now, something she rarely ever does, “You love her as if she is your mother without realizing she will never accept you as her daughter. None of them will. You think that if we didn’t offer ourselves up to die for them, that they would still let us live? They wouldn’t! If even one of us stepped out of line, they’d kill all of us, Lex. We’re just war machines to them, abominations- ‘abortions’,” The derrogatory name people like Pike often use when referring to the Nightbloods, “Why can’t you see that?”_

_Lexa can see where Costia’s doubts are rooted, and, to be fair, she, too, has had doubts about the people of the WLF. But she will never doubt Indra. Indra has always protected her, Indra would never let anything happen to her. “Indra wouldn’t. Ever. She loves me.”_

_It was at that moment that anything tying Costia to the WLF suddenly let her go. “Whatever, Lexa.” Costia begins to walk towards the door._

_“Costia, don’t go- Look,” but before she can finish, the door has already been slammed shut._

The next day, Lexa awoke to find out that Costia had defected from the WLF in the middle of the night. Indra had been enraged when she found out, cursing Costia’s name and calling the Nightblood anything negative she could think of. Lexa had simply sat in the chair across from Indra’s desk and forced herself not to cry. About a week passed and all Lexa had been able to do was sit in bed. That is, until Indra had forced her to take her team out on a mission, hoping it would lift the Commander’s spirits. It had the opposite effect, for that day, Anya disappeared during the mission. Melanie and Lexa spent hours searching for tracks, a scent, anything, but there was no trace of Anya. Almost as if she’d never even been there. And so, that year had left both Lexa Woods and Melanie Justineau with broken hearts.

Lexa walks up to Melanie and they’re so close they can hear each other’s hearts beating. “You know nothing,” Lexa spits.

“Hate me for telling the bloody truth, I don’t care. It won’t make it a lie. But you know what? Tell Indra I said ‘good job’ because, man, did she teach you well. You look just like her, using people up just to throw them aside like nothing.”

“You know what, fuck you!” Lexa yells. “Fuck you, and your stew-pid fook’en accent,” she mocks the English girl, and Melanie responds by simply rolling her eyes and walking away, “Might as well drop it already, we all know you lost it 9 years ago!” Melanie slams the door shut, leaving Lexa alone in silence. The silence practically slaps in her in the face as she realizes the mocking was unnecessary. _Mockery is not the product of a strong mind._ No matter, she will apologize later, if she sees fit. Now, she simply hopes she’ll make it through their mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I meant to post this yesterday, but I fell asleep lol  
> Anyway, I hope the chapter is long enough,  
> and please let me know if there are any mistakes below! :)


	4. Chapter 4

Lexa and her team meet at the gate ten minutes before 12. Much to Lexa’s surprise, Melanie doesn’t mention the argument. In fact, she doesn’t say anything at all. Josephine and Ryker talk between themselves, something about a comic series they found at an abandoned book store and how Ryker won’t let Josephine borrow the second issue. Lexa is about to tell them to be professional, but she stops herself.  _ They deserve a break from it all. _ In reality, every Nightblood does, but that’s a problem for another day.

For some reason Lexa can’t quite place her finger on, she’s nervous.  _ Or maybe stressed,  _ she imagines.  _ The Seraphites, Melanie, tonight- Clarke Griffin.  _ Lexa realizes she’s hardly thought about what’s to come from the research program; she realizes she hardly asked questions. Lexa is not an open person. As a matter of fact, she’s sure her friends don’t even know her favorite color. But now she’ll have to claw out the deepest parts of her soul and serve them up on a silver platter for a complete stranger. She’s thankful, at least, for the fact that Clarke seems kind, though, she can’t truly be sure. She wonders for a moment how it is that she has never met the girl before today, for she has known Abby since the day she arrived at the colony, and she has been to the hospital building an obscene amount of times. 

“I got 4 M9 pistols for ya, Captain.”

Lexa’s train of thought is quickly thrown off-track as she looks to Miller at the counter. “Right,” she says softly. “Thank you.”

She grabs the guns one by one, passing them to her teammates before taking the last one for herself. Unlike the human army, the Nightbloods hardly have any use for weapons; there is a reason why no one ever survives a bite from a Nightblood and it is not due to the virus. Still, Indra insists that the Nightbloods take a pistol at the very least, and so, Lexa of course complies.

Miller nods as he logs the weapons on a sheet attached to a clipboard, “My pleasure. Have a safe trip, it’d be a shame if that one took over.” He motions towards Josephine, who sticks her tongue out at him and begins to walk towards the gate, Ryker trails behind her.

Lexa jokingly winces, “You’re right, I’ll make sure to be extra careful tonight.”

Josephine turns around and raises her middle finger towards the Captain, “Screw you, Commander.”

A buzzer goes off and the gate begins to roll to the sides. Lexa and her team begin their walk outside of the walls. Soon, they are in the trees and the gate is closed behind them. The lights from the colony no longer illuminate their path, so they must rely on the moon and their heightened sense of vision. The snowfall has been short today, so the floor is more wet than snowy. Still, they are aware of the fact that they have to be careful about their tracks.

Ryker and Josephine walk ahead of Lexa and Melanie. They continue to talk and bicker, but more quietly now. Lexa and Melanie on the other hand, remain completely silent. For the first few miles, it doesn’t bother Lexa. She actually likes the quiet under a midnight sky. Unfortunately, Melanie does not. The girl doesn’t speak to Lexa, instead, she begins to stomp her boots down as she walks, shoveling the snow away from her path in the process.

“Is your backpack heavy?” Lexa sneers.

Melanie huffs as her footfalls become gentle again. “Not at all, Captain.”

Lexa is not a prideful person; should she find herself in the wrong, she will apologize without issue. The problem now is that she feels as if Melanie owes her an apology as well. Still, Lexa has been taught to lead by example, and so, she chooses to apologize first. “I’m sorry for mocking you,” she says genuinely, “It was immature and mean, and I’m sorry.”

“That’s what you think I’m upset about?” Melanie scoffs. “Lex, I literally could not give any less fucks about what you think about my accent. I’m upset because you kissed me just to turn me away. I’m upset because you think no one shares your pain. I mean, don’t you realize we knew them for the same amount of time? Anya was mine the way Costia was yours. And yet you act as if you are the only one who lost a friend and the person they loved. They were my family, Lex. I lost them, too. And I thought you’d be there as my friend, but then you kissed me, so I figured, ‘Hey, I suppose she’ll be there as something more.’ But you weren’t, you just left, too.”

_ I suppose I have been a bit selfish, and inconsiderate. We were all we had back then, of course it hurt her.  _ “Well, then I’m sorry for treating you that way, too.” Lexa looks to Melanie, “Truly. I should’ve been there for you, I’m sorry I didn’t realize that. I think I just forget that not everyone deals with things the way I do- Doesn’t make it okay, of course. But I’m here now, and whenever you need me, as your friend. I swear it.”

Melanie doesn’t like to hold grudges against people, she never has.  _ It’s too exhausting _ , she thinks. The sides of her mouth begin to shift up as she meets the Captain’s gaze, “It’s alright… I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable...and for bringing up Costia. I know that’s still a touchy subject.”

Lexa simply smiles in response,  _ I forgive you.  _ She thinks it is the end of the conversation, but then Melanie speaks again.

“I know you think I just forgot about Anya.” True. “But I didn’t. You just remind me of her, is all…”

_ “-should be somewhere near the north perimeter.” Anya points to a corner on the map in front of her. Lexa simply nods, she hasn’t said much the entire trip. Anya looks to her sister and sighs as she pats her shoulder, “You know we can talk if you need to, right?” _

_ Lexa looks straight at the ground and shakes her head. “There’s nothing to talk about.” _

_ “The longer you avoid that feeling in your chest, the longer it’ll linger, Lex. Think about that, alright? I’m not telling you how to feel or how to deal with your shit, but I worry about you. I’m just looking out for you. That’s what we do, we look out for each other, always.” she assures the Captain. _

_ “I didn’t look out for her well enough, then.” _

_ “You did what you felt was right,” Anya says, “Same as her. She didn’t give you a second thought, I doubt you owe her one.” _

_ “I loved her,” she whispers, almost afraid to admit it _

_ Anya frowns at her sister, it truly pains her to see Lexa this way. “I know.” _

_ Lexa finally looks up to Anya and asks, “What if she was my only chance, and I ruined it? I ruined it by not being there, not following her. I didn’t even chase her, Anya. Maybe I just didn’t deserve her.” _

_ Anya shakes her head and looks straight into her eyes seriously. “Her choice doesn’t define you. Her love doesn’t define you. I know right now it feels like nothing will ever be right again, but you still have tomorrow, and the day after that. And, who knows? Maybe one day you’ll find someone or something who’ll make you forget Costia even existed, but you gotta keep picking yourself up. And if you find that you don’t have the strength, then I’ll be there, always,” she promises. Anya holds out her hand and Lexa takes it, they both squeeze gently. The promise is sealed. _

_ Melanie walks up behind Anya and throws her arms around her girlfriend’s neck as she plants a kiss on her cheek. “How are things going over here?” _

_ Anya turns her head and returns the gentle kiss. “All right, I guess, and you, love?” _

_ “Sleepy,” she drawls. She isn’t really that tired, as Nightbloods only require sleep about one night a week, but she wants Anya’s attention. _

_ Anya rubs her thumb over Melanie’s hand, “Go get some rest, I’ll join you in a few minutes.” _

_ “Come with me,” she begs, “The Commander’s got this covered, right?” Melanie shoots a pleading look towards Lexa. _

_ Lexa sighs and nods as she takes the map from Anya’s hand, “Sure, I’ll finish up. Go.” As much as her friends’ relationship was a sappy reminder of the girl she lost only a week before, she is happy for them. And she knows that if Anya stays, she’ll have to talk about the feelings she is still trying to convince herself she doesn’t have..  _

_ Anya and Melanie don’t stick around long enough for Lexa to change her mind. In seconds, they are laying inside of their tent, facing each other. For a few moments, they simply stare at each other with smiles on their faces. Looks of adoration. Anya reaches up and moves a curly strand of hair behind Melanie’s ear before stroking the girl’s cheek. _

_ “You look pretty.” She whispers softly. _

_ It is such a simple statement, but it makes Melanie feel like she is the brightest star in the sky. Nothing has ever felt warmer than Anya’s love. She could stay in this exact moment in time and space forever and never want anything else. She blushes and buries her head into Anya’s neck as they wrap their arms around each other. _

_ “Is Lex alright?” Melanie asks suddenly. _

_ “That’s what you’re thinking about right now? Ouch…” Anya teases. _

_ Melanie rolls her eyes and playfully slaps Anya’s arm, “Shut up. Is she?” _

_ Anya sighs. “Probably not, but I’ll help her through it. I’m just not sure how to, you know? It’s like she makes it her job to shut everyone out, like she thinks she has to carry every burden to prove she’s strong. And she is strong, I admire her for it. I just wish I could do more, bear it so that she doesn’t have to.” _

_ She’s proud to be loved by someone so generous and kind like Anya. Melanie kisses Anya’s cheek gently, “Just be there. You don’t have to talk or do anything, but stand there so she’s not alone. Everything else will fall into place, and, eventually, she’ll be okay.” Anya nods and the pair fall into silence, still entwined in each other’s arms. _

_ They stay that way for about two hours until Anya shuffles away from Melanie. Melanie had fallen asleep, but she wakes as soon as Anya’s grasp leaves her. “Where are you going?” She asks groggily as she wipes the sleep away from her eyes. _

_ Anya stands and quickly slips her jacket on. “I gotta go scout ahead. I’d send Josephine, but she’d probably just walk 5 minutes out, stay there for half an hour, and come back and say the path looks good. And Ryker- well… you know.” Melanie nods because she indeed does know. Anya bends down to Melanie’s level and perks her lips, “I’ll be back soon. Gimme a kiss.” _

_ Melanie meets her lips against Anya’s and smiles, “Be safe.” _

_ “I always am,” Anya says with a smirk as she disappears past the tent’s opening. Melanie doesn’t waste any time falling back asleep. _

_ The next morning comes in what feels like seconds. Melanie turns over in her cot, expecting to find Anya’s warmth, instead she finds an empty space. She shrugs it off, imagining Anya just got up a bit earlier than her. She pulls her jacket on and makes her way out of the tent. _

_ Lexa is sitting by the fire warming a can over it, “Tell Anya to get out here before Josephine drinks all the coffee.” _

_ Josephine laughs as she jokes, “She has about 5 seconds.” _

_ Melanie raises a brow as she looks around. “She’s not out here?” _

_ “I thought she was in the tent with you,” The concern raises Lexa out of her seat. “I haven’t seen her since she left to scout.” _

_ Lexa and Melanie quickly agree to go look for her while Josephine and Ryker pack everything up. Melanie runs too fast to make conversation on the way. They are able to find some tracks in the snow, which they follow for about a mile before the tracks suddenly stop. After that, the ground is left unmarked, the tracks being washed away by melted snow. Melanie looks around, searching for any sign of Anya, but is only met with a maze of trees. _

_ Lexa comes to the same conclusion that Anya is nowhere around, and she is praying that the girl simply lost track of time. She turns to Melanie, “Are you sure she didn’t come back last night?” _

_ Melanie stands there, staring out into the wilderness. “I don’t know. I just remember she got up and left-“ the realization hits her and she swallows hard as her face falls,” Sh-she left.” _

_ “No,” Lexa says as she continues to look around for any sign of Anya, “She wouldn’t, she wouldn’t,” she repeats to herself, but the suspicion creeps into her head anyway. _

_ Eventually, they give up their search and return home with Josephine and Ryker. The trek is silent. Melanie walks as if she is a lifeless carcass being pushed by the wind. Lexa’s jaw remains locked and she does not look anywhere but straight ahead. Josephine and Ryker don’t say a word. _

Weeks passed and Lexa ruled Anya dead. Indra, Melanie, and Josephine continued to believe the Nightblood had defected, but Lexa wouldn’t- couldn’t believe that. Anya had promised to always be there, and Anya never lied. At least, that's what Lexa hoped. Three months later, Melanie didn’t speak about it anymore, but she no longer believed Anya defected, but she also couldn’t accept her death.

And now, a year later, Melanie lets out a shaky breath, “I didn’t want to believe that she was dead, but if I didn’t believe that, then I’d have to believe she ran. And if I were to believe that she ran, then I’d have to believe that she left me. Pretending I fancied you was just easier than that.”

“She wouldn’t abandon you, Mel,”  _ or me.  _ Lexa promises. “I don’t know what happened, but she wouldn’t just leave.”

Melanie feels guilty, in a sense, to almost prefer that Anya be dead than to believe Anya had left without her, but she keeps that thought to herself. Mostly, she just wants Anya to come back with some insane story about why she has been gone for so long. She knows, however, that after her disappearance had lasted over a year, that possibility has become very unlikely.

Lexa sympathizes with Melanie’s pain instead of feeling it, as she knows it is for Melanie to feel, not her. She often feels like mourning her best friend, but doesn’t want to overshadow Melanie’s grief. She also feels it’s unfair to Costia to mourn another. The previous year had been wretchedly unkind to her, and yet she does not think about herself, but rather everyone else.

The team finally reached their destination around 3:00AM. The area is mostly flat land apart from a few tall buildings surrounding it.  _ Probably how they’re getting us, _ Lexa guesses.

Almost as if she is reading Lexa’s mind, Josephine chimes in, “They’re probably up in the buildings. I mean, where else would they scope us out,” she gestures towards the field of land around them. 

“I can smell them,” Ryker says as he lifts his nose to the southwest building.

Lexa puts her hand on his chest, holding him back, “Keep your cool, alright? Josephine: on him.”

Ryker is younger than Melanie and Lexa by a year, but the same age as Josephine. Ryker is very obviously not the brightest, and he has a tendency to lose control. What had landed him on Lexa’s spec ops team was the fact that he was an excellent hunter. His sense of smell was extremely developed, and he was fast (and Josephine would not have joined if he hadn’t). 

The team stalks towards the large skyscraper, and soon enough, the smell of the Seraphites reaches the entire team. The smell of women is obvious, which is concerning.

Lexa turns to Ryker again, “You keep a lookout.”

“I can control myself,” Ryker defends himself.

“We can’t take any chances.”

Ryker looks like he’s about to argue, but Josephine shoots him a look.  _ Just follow orders. _

The virus is responsible for the Nightbloods’ abilities, but also their impulses. The virus wants to spread under any circumstances, thus meaning that women, being viable hosts for both the virus and a second generation child, paired with a Nightblood is a disaster waiting to happen. In the colony, it’s not an issue, as the Nightbloods are sedated by the Keryon serum, but out on the field, anything can happen.

They climb to the 20th floor, where most of the walls have been torn down, except for a squared room in the corner of the floor. Some light pours into the outside from under the door, and the Nightbloods are sure they have found their target. One of the room’s walls, made up of planks, has a small hole. Lexa slowly makes her way to it and looks into the room. She sees 4 cots set up in the center, two women and two men are laying in them. She quickly makes her way back to her friends, who are kneeling behind a desk. 

“Two women and two men,” Lexa informs them. “Lightbourne, you take the women. Melanie, you’re on the man with the beard,” Lexa turns to Josephine, “And, please, make it quick.” Josephine always enjoys playing with her food, which only really complicates things.

The 3 girls creep into the room silently and quickly kill the sleeping Seraphites. Lexa opens the door and waves Ryker over. Once everyone is inside, Lexa smiles as she motions towards the bodies, “Well, seeing as how none of you annoyed me tonight, lunch is on me.” And so, they each dive into an individual carcass. It’s rare that Nightbloods get to eat a large meal, much less an actual human, so they take their time.

Once they have all finished their meal, Lexa instructs them to look around for anything of use. Josephine is the first to come up with something. She opens a small cabinet and takes out a container of gasoline. She shakes it and the liquid inside sloshes around. “Looks like our friends were planning us a surprise party,” she jokes.

Melanie finds a few bundles of arrows, and Lexa finds two rifles.  _ So much for no technology _ , Lexa grumbles in her head. Lexa looks towards Ryker, who is standing next to the corpses, “Got anything?”

“No,” Ryker says dejectedly. He always ends up feeling like dead weight since Josephine and Meanie are usually the ones to find anything useful and Lexa is the Captain, leaving him to be the extra help.

Josephine is quick to point that fact out when she says, “You sure you’re spec ops?” She laughs teasingly.

Ryker rolls his eyes and walks to a corner of the room. “Whatever,” he says as he leans back onto the wall behind him. Suddenly, the wall breaks under the weight of his body and Ryker finds himself falling backwards. Josephine bursts out laughing, while Lexa and Melanie rush to help the boy up.

When they finally get Ryker to stand, they realize there are stairs behind him. Lexa pats him on the back and smiles proudly, “You know, Josephine’s never found a secret staircase.” Ryker grins from ear to ear before sticking his tongue out at Josephine, Josephine only grins.

Lexa is the first to go up the stairs, which Melanie is quick to disapprove of because  _ “You’re the commander, you have to be careful!”.  _ There is a heavy door at the top of the staircase. It would take two grown men to get it open, but Lexa gets it to swing back in mere seconds. She is met with the cool night’s wind. She steps onto the roof of the building. She looks around to the opposite end of the roof and spots something peculiar.

Josephine, the last one up the stairs, has made it to the roof at this point. She walks up to Lexa and stares out at what Lexa is staring at. “A sky bridge...those sneaky fuckers. You can call ‘em crazy, but you can’t call ‘em dumb,” she remarks.

It appears the Seraphites had built a bridge across the buildings to avoid being spotted by the WLF on the ground. Other sky bridges had been found in the past, but they are difficult to find, for the Seraphites know how to hide. What made this specific one odd was the fact that it seems to stretch across a large distance, so much so that Lexa cannot make out how far the other end is.

“Ryker,” Lexa calls, “Go get some of those jerrycans.” Ryker rushes down the stairs and is coming back up in seconds.

Josephine quirks her eyebrows, “Don’t you think we should see what’s on the other side first?”

Lexa was curious, but she was also serious about protocol. “Indra will have to authorize that. For now, we’ll disable it.”

Melanie scoffs, “Seriously? It won’t take long. You really expect us to go all the way back home, wait for Indra to approve, and then march our asses back out here? You’ve bloody well gone mad, Captain.”

“It’s the way things work.”

“Hey, Lex, what’s that around your throat?” Josephine asks.

Lexa raises a hand to her neck and finds nothing, “What?”

Josephine waves her hand and chuckles, “Oh, my mistake. Thought I saw a leash, seeing as you’re Indra’s good little dog.” Melanie chuckles behind them.

Ryker sets the jerrycans down. “At least she got picked to be Captain.”

“Yeah,” Lexa says with a nod, “I’m Captain,” she says cockily. “Now, help me out with this.” Lexa picks up a jerrycan and Josephine follows.

The bridge was made up of various materials, but the section attached to the building was made up of rope and wood. Lexa plans to use the gasoline to destroy it so that the Seraphites would not be able to get onto the roof, but the Nightbloods, with the help of their enhanced agility, could still make the jump onto the sky bridge and back onto the roof.

Josephine and Lexa step onto the bridge, which creeks under their weight. Josephine continues on while the Captain freezes for a second. “Scared of heights, Captain?”

Lexa rolls her eyes, “Shut it, Lightbourne.”

They begin to pour the gasoline on the bridge before returning to the roof. Lexa removes the safeguards securing the bridge to the roof, just for extra measure. Lexa then removes the pistol from her belt holster and releases a few rounds into the bridge. After the third bullet, a flame sparks and begins to devour the first section of the bridge, marking the completion of their objective. On their way out, however, Lexa orders Ryker and Josephine to destroy the lookout camp on the 20th floor.

—

The Nightbloods return to the colony around 7:00AM. Their first stop is at the gates, where they are injected with the Keryon serum before entering. Once they’re inside, Lexa’s first thought is that she wants to go home and relax, but, as always, duty calls; she must go see Indra and deliver her report. Lexa dismisses Ryker, Josephine, and Melanie before beginning her walk to Indra’s office.

The walk is short, and quiet, as most of the WLF seems to still be asleep, or barely getting started with their day. It’s peaceful, and Lexa takes it as a good substitute for being alone in her apartment. Lexa passes the path leading to the hospital building and finds herself glancing towards it and thinking of the young therapist. Lexa can’t lie and say she isn’t nervous, excited, or both, to see the blonde again.

Not before long, Lexa arrives at Indra’s door. She knocks courtly.

“Come in,” Indra says from inside the room.

Lexa steps inside and offers Indra a small smile, “Good morning.”

“Good to see you back in one piece. How’d it go?” Indra motions towards the chair in front of her desk, as always, offering Lexa a seat.

Lexa takes her place in the chair and begins to recount the events from the night before, “Well, we arrived around 3:00AM. Desai was able to lead us to a building, where we found a camp on the 20th floor. We took care of the Seraphites camping out there, took their valuables, destroyed the rest. Desai was able to find a staircase hidden behind a wall, which led to the rooftop. It was there that we found one of their sky bridges, which Lightbourne and I disabled.”

“Why didn’t you investigate the other end?” Indra asks.

Lexa bows her head, she hates when Josephine is right. “I figured I should get your approval first.”

Indra sighs as she scribbles on some paperwork on her desk, “Well, nothing to do about that now.” She pauses for a moment before looking up at Lexa, “Tell me: are you still struggling with your English?”

Lexa rolls her eyes, “Indra, I’ve been fluent for years now. I’ve been a lot of things for years now. You really must stop treating me like a child.” Lexa knows Indra means well, but being coddled only makes her feel like she cannot be trusted with responsibility, something she feels she has proven she can handle on multiple occasions.

“I ask because I care,” Indra says with a frown. “If Gaia will rarely speak to me, I’d at least like for my other child to do so.”

“I’m sorry,” Lexa apologizes. “How are things with Gaia?”

Indra suspires downheartedly, “Our  _ beliefs  _ continue to conflict, so I suppose things are going as well as they could be.”

“I’ve spoken to her, and I don’t think she cares about your beliefs all that much; you are her mother, after all. Perhaps you could try just talking to her about casual things, without reminding her of your differences,” Lexa advises. Her and Gaia were practically sisters, even if Gaia disapproved of Lexa and Indra’s work, so it saddened her to see that Gaia did not get along with Indra. Her family felt incomplete when either Indra or Gaia were missing.

Indra sighs with a smile, “I suppose I could try that.”

“Good,” Lexa responds as she stands, “I’m glad we got the chance to talk, but I should get home and rest.”

Indra shakes her head, “Unfortunately, that will have to wait; Dr.Griffin’s called for you.”

Lexa groans in her head, but only says, “Alright, then I suppose I should make my way over there. I’ll see you tomorrow at breakfast?”

Indra nods as she returns her attention to the paperwork on her desk, “Yes. Take care.”  _ I love you. _

“Will do,”  _ I love you, too. _

As Lexa makes her way out of the HQ building, she wonders what Abby could possibly need.  _ I hope it’s not another blood sample, I hate those _ , Lexa thinks to herself.

—

Lexa peeks into Abby’s office and finds the doctor buried in paperwork. Lexa finds it funny how the community leaders always seem to be up to their necks in paperwork, considering the colony is a fairly small society, but she figures things are more complicated than she imagines. She knocks on the door, finding Abby’s attention, before stepping into the office. “You wanted to see me?”

Abby raises a brow in confusion, “Uh… I’m glad to see you made it back to the colony safely, Captain, but I didn’t send for you.”

“Oh,” Lexa says, surprised. “It’s just that Indra said-“

“It was me!” A voice calls out, and in walks Clarke Griffin.

Lexa turns her head promptly and meets Clarke’s gaze.  _ Are her eyes always that blue? _

Clarke smiles at the Captain,  _ how does she look this good after being out all night? _

Abby looks at the girls before her. The fact that they are staring at each other while she observes makes the situation very awkward for her. She stands from her desk, “Well, I’ll- uh- leave you two to talk.” She scurries out of the room.

Clarke’s cheeks blush lightly, “I’m sorry for the confusion, Captain.”

Strangely, Lexa feels relieved that it is Clarke who called for her and not the older doctor. She thinks Abby is pleasant enough, but she’s tired of the blood tests and physical performance analysis. The fact that Clarke is also more beautiful may play a small role, too. A smile spreads across the Captains face as she waves her hand, “Oh, no worries, Dr.Griffin.”

Clarke smiles back, and like the last time they spoke, they simply stare at each other for a moment before one of them speaks again. “I- uh- I wanted to apologize,” Clarke begins, “For interrupting your training yesterday. I hope you didn’t get a bad first impression of me.”

“Not at all, we were almost done when you all decided to drop by anyway,” Lexa shrugs it off.

Clarke notes how the Captain is very understanding, something she is grateful for because she does not have the best relationship with the other military leaders, Indra and Octavia Blake, due to the fact that they are  _ not _ very understanding. There’s the same aura of professionalism and reservation among all three of them, probably because they have all seen horrid things beyond the walls, but Lexa is different somehow. Lexa is warm and kind, and even though she doesn’t say much, inviting. Clarke can already tell she will be an interesting patient. “I’ve gotta say, Captain, I’m excited to get started with our project. This could be the key to finally bringing the WLF and the Nightbloods together as one people. I do however understand that it could be difficult to get started, considering we’re hardly familiar with each other, right?” Lexa nods. “Yeah, so I was thinking we could get to know each other beforehand, just to make it easier.”

Lexa isn’t sure how she feels about the idea, but she figures she ought to try. “That sounds alright. Maybe we could meet sometime this week?”

“That works,” Clarke nods.

“Great,” Lexa grins, “I’ll let you know.”

Lexa says her goodbye and leaves the building. Now, she can finally head to her apartment and rest. She is not physically tired, but she likes to take the day off after coming back from a mission. Usually, she would visit the market or the field, but today she just feels like staying home and watching a movie.

—

Lexa walks into the apartment building, but instead of heading into her own apartment, her eyes land on Anya’s door on the opposite side of the hall. It had remained closed all this time, just to make it easier on the Nightbloods to walk past the reminder of their friend. Almost like her brain enjoys torturing her, her eyes are thrown to Costia’s door, and before she knows it, she is walking towards the apartment.

Lexa twists the doorknob and walks in. A wave of lavender and honey hits her nostrils, like when she would bury her head in Costia’s hair. Lexa looks around the room and everything is exactly as Costia had left it. The same book opened to the same page still sat on her table. The chair she had pulled out for Lexa the last night Lexa went over was still in the same spot. A picture of Lexa, Costia, and Anya when they were about 16 and Anya was 18; Indra had let them drive one of the rovers for the first time. Lexa picks up the frame and brushes the dust off of its surface. Lexa had been driving the rover when the picture was taken, so her eyes were fixed on the road. Costia looked directly at the camera, her smile was big and bright, and the sunlight illuminated her face like stars on a midnight sky. Anya was wide-eyed as she tried to tell Lexa to turn. They all seemed so  _ normal _ , and happy then. A small drop falls onto the picture frame, and that is how Lexa realizes she’s been driven to tears.

Lexa begins to wipe away her tears before she feels arms wrap around her. “I miss them, too,” Josephine whispers against her back.

Usually, Lexa would push the girl off and pretend nothing had happened, pretend she hadn’t cried, but for some reason, she doesn’t move and she doesn’t force Josephine off. “I just hope they’re safe,” Lexa whispers back.

“They are,” Josephine assured the commander, but it is of little consolation. Lexa is more of a realist than an optimist, and so is Josephine. All they can truly do is hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sooo sorry for the late update!  
> Last week was really busy what with commissions, school, and working on some other projects, but this week should be a little less busy :)


	5. Chapter 5

The night before had been awkward, as Lexa never let her emotions shine through her calm exterior, and when they did, they were usually positive. The grief both Costia and Anya had left her with was difficult to deal with, though, and Lexa could only conceal her emotions about it for so long. Still, she was glad that Josephine did not bring it up this morning as Lexa made her way to the cafeteria to meet Indra for breakfast.

The cafeteria is bustling with Wolves trying to get their share of breakfast. It has been a calm day thus far, and Lexa expects it to continue that way. None of the Nightblood squads are scheduled for an outing, there is not any training today, and Lexa is not planning on hanging out with her friends tonight, so her schedule is relatively free.

“Any plans for today?” Indra asks as Lexa sets her tray of food down on the table and sits down across from her.

“No,” Lexa responds. “I’ll probably just stay home today and relax, unless you needed something?”

“Take the day off,” Indra smiles. Indra then turns to Octavia, who is sitting next to her, “And you?”

Octavia tends to be quiet whenever Lexa is around, and Lexa does not know if it is because Octavia does not trust her or because they never got close. “I’ve got a meeting with Diyoza, then Lincoln and I are getting together after his shift ends.”

Indra nods, “And how is Lincoln?”  _ Are you still happy with him? _

Octavia smiles genuinely, “He’s good.”  _ The happiest. _

“What of your brother? Have you spoken to him?”

Octavia’s brother, Bellamy, had joined Pike’s taskforce early on in the year, after Pike started recruiting when Jaha defected. This had greatly upset Octavia, and Bellamy’s girlfriend, Echo, who serves under Diyoza, for obvious reasons. Bellamy had once entered the Wolves’ training program about 7 years ago, when he was 20 years old, but when the Blakes’ father had passed due to a drug overdose a year later, Bellamy abandoned the program to maintain Octavia. Octavia, on the other hand, had taken their father’s death as inspiration to join the Wolves. In the process, Octavia grew prideful of the fact that she was a Wolf and extremely loyal to Indra. So when Bellamy told her he had joined the task force, Octavia took it as a great betrayal.

Octavia glances towards Lexa, then back to Indra, “No, I haven’t...and I don’t plan to. Pike’s task force is the same as Jaha in my eyes. If he wants to join arms with the enemy, then he can cope with losing his blood.”

Lexa feels some sympathy for Octavia, as she had felt the same betrayal when Costia defected from the WLF, but she is not close enough to Octavia to voice her support.  _ Not close at all, actually. _

“Don’t say that,” Indra says as she swallows down some food, “He’s your brother. He’ll come around and see his mistake soon enough.”

“How could he not? Pike’s more laughable and insufferable than anything. That half-sized man’s down to earth in the worst way.” Lexa adds with a laugh. To her surprise, it earns her a small smile from Octavia, which she quickly hides by pulling her cup up to her lips and drinking.

Indra also smiles for a split second before shooting Lexa a stern look, “Stop that. We may not like him, but he is one of us nonetheless.”

The doors burst open and a Wolf, whose name Lexa cannot remember, rushes in. “I need to speak to Indra,” he calls out, urgently looking around the cafeteria.

Indra stands and waves him over, “Here, boy.” He rushes over and Indra motions for him to speak, “What is it?”

“There’s been an attack on a checkpoint in the southwest region. 8 Wolves were left injured, they’re coming through the gates now,” he explains in anguish. “You have to come see.”

Indra looks back at Lexa and Octavia, worried, and they quickly stand and race out of the cafeteria together. The gates are across the cafeteria building, so they arrive rather quickly. A crowd of people has begun to form as wolves and nurses work to carry the 8 bodies in, Abby at the front of the crowd. “Be careful with hi- People, move, move- We need space!”

“Everyone, make way for the injured,” Indra instructs loudly, and everyone begins to clear the path for the wounded.

“Thank you,” Abby says as she approaches Indra, Octavia, and Lexa.

Indra nods before speaking again, “I need a status report, Doctor.”

“7 critically injured.” Abby then gestures towards a man being held up by Miller, one Lexa’s heard called ‘Murphy’, “He seems to have come out okay, might have a minor concussion, though.”

Indra walks over to Miller and Murphy to gain further explanation. It’s not every day that an attack ends this way, and Indra wants to find out why today it did. “Octavia, help them.” Octavia rushes to Murphy’s side and holds him up with Miller.”What happened?”

Murphy winces at Octavia’s touch and lets out a groan of pain before responding, “We were scouting the southwest checkpoint’s perimeter when we saw a pair of men passing by on the trail. We thought they were just regular travelers since they weren’t dressed like Scars, so we brought them into the lookout tower. Then we started seeing smoke through the windows coming from the base of the tower. The two men attacked us and ran off. When I looked, they were with some other Scars riding off on horseback.”

Indra clenches her jaw so hard, Lexa’s afraid her teeth will crack. “Get Diyoza and Justineau, and meet me in my office in 30 minutes,” she orders Octavia and Lexa before storming off.

—

Octavia did not stick around much longer after Indra left, as she went to retrieve Diyoza. Lexa, on the other hand, helped clear out the citizens so that Abby could get through. She then raced to the library, where she knew Melanie was most mornings, and quickly retrieved her.

“Where are we going?” Melanie asks as Lexa pulls her out of the building. She was hoping to have a quiet morning before the Captain bursted in saying they had to go.

Lexa does not turn to face her as she speaks, still leading them to Indra’s office, “There’s been an attack and Indra’s ordered a meeting.”

_ It must be serious then,  _ Melanie concludes. Usually, Indra only speaks to Lexa and Octavia, since they are the heads of the military. It is only when things are grave that Diyoza and Melanie are called in. On the way there, Lexa briefs Melanie on everything she knows so far about the attack, but it is not much.

They finally arrive at Indra’s office and walk inside, each of them taking a seat at the table across from Octavia and Diyoza. Indra is leaning on the table using her arms and bowing her head. “I’m sure we’ve all been made aware of the attack.” The 4 women sitting at the table nod despondently. “This is bad,” Indra continues with a sigh, “We are losing too many supplies and checkpoints, pretty soon we will have to enforce rationing.”

“I don’t understand why we don’t just wipe them out. We have a sleeping army at our disposal,” Octavia says, the annoyance and impatience clear in her voice as she glowers at Lexa and Melanie.

Melanie scoffs, “Right, because we’re the only ones who should have to risk our necks; God forbid anything happens to our precious, human Wolves.”

“It’s your responsibility to do so. I mean, isn’t that the reason you guys are even here?” Octavia is right, of course, that is the Nightbloods’ purpose: to live and die for the WLF.

“Yeah, well, if you wanna get into ‘reasons’, let's talk about why your men are the ones who let the checkpoint fall,” Melanie retorts.

Lexa puts her hand out in Melanie’s direction, directing her to stop talking. “What she means is,” she clears her throat, “We all have a role to play in this war, and while the Doskola Platoon would be proud to lay their lives down for the WLF, we would appreciate it if our human counterparts were there to fight alongside us.”

“No, what I mean is: we shouldn’t have to die fixing your mistakes,” Melanie glares at Octavia.

Octavia smirks at Melanie before turning to Lexa, “I suggest you muzzle your bitch before I arrest her for treason.”

“That’s enough,” Indra snaps, “We are supposed to be a united front. We have one enemy, and it is on the outside of our walls, not within, so act like it.”

“What are we going to do, then?” Octavia asks, and this time she sounds more worried than like she’s proposing a challenge. “Will we just allow them to continue attacking us until we’ve exhausted all of our resources? We have to end this, Indra. The war did not end with Isaac, we’ve just been busy losing it.” It is clear now what Octavia’s true anxieties are. In reality, she has nothing against the Nightbloods, she just wants her people to be safe, and they can’t ever be safe as long as the Seraphites live.

“We can’t risk an attack that big,” Indra says with a frustrated sigh.

“Why not?”

“We don’t know enough. We don’t know where their camps are, we don’t know their numbers, and we don’t know where Jaha is. We’d be going in blind,” Indra explains, “And even if I was crazy enough to approve that battle plan, the other community leaders wouldn’t. We’d have civil unrest.”

“So get them to agree,” Lexa offers. “Colonel Blake’s right, the Nightbloods were meant to end this war, and we’re ready to. Just give the order.”

Melanie looks at Lexa with wide eyes and alarm, “Are you crazy? These aren’t your lives to offer, Lexa.”

“That’s Captain Woods to you, girl.” Indra glares at Melanie. “But you’re right. They aren’t. Even if they were, we still don’t have enough intel on the Scars to lead a successful attack. The war will have to wait. For now, all we can do is schedule a meeting with the community leaders to discuss rationing and continue to gather intel.” Indra turns to Lexa, “I want you to interrogate Jaha’s son when you leave, and you,” She directs her attention towards Octavia and Diyoza, “I want 6 squads in the field tonight, each with one Nightblood, scouting the western region.” She looks at Melanie, “You will select the Nightbloods that will accompany the Wolves and meet Octavia at the gates at 1900 hours to deploy the teams. You will order them not to engage; we want information, not heads. Find me something, anything. Are we clear?” The women at the table nod. “Good, then you’re all dismissed.”

—

Lexa and Melanie make their way out of the office. They expect Octavia and Diyoza to trail behind them until they reach the exit, but the pair disappears into another hallway. Lexa takes the newfound privacy as an opportunity to address Melanie. “Don’t do that again,” she snarls.

Melanie quirks an eyebrow, “What the hell are you on about now?”

“That,” Lexa says with a hushed tone as she points in Indra’s office’s direction. “You sounded like a defector.”

“What- for not wanting to die a meaningless death?”

“For questioning Indra and Blake,” Lexa answers.

Melanie lets out a dry laugh, “Oh! My mistake, Captain, I must’ve missed the memo where our game of ‘Simon’- sorry, ‘Indra and Octavia says’ was announced.”

“This isn't a joke, Melanie. If Octavia wanted to, she could have you killed for speaking like that,” Lexa sighs and rubs her temple, “Just trust Indra- trust  _ me, _ please. There’s nothing other than that for you to worry about.”

Melanie, like every Nightblood, has come to only know the WLF as their home, but that does not stop her from seeing its flaws. She knows the day when she will have to sacrifice her life for the WLF will come eventually, but she can hardly accept the fact. How can anyone? Years before, when she was still in London, a thought had dawned on her: The second generation was a product of a new era mankind had brought upon themselves; the apocalypse was the only reason she existed, and yet she was helping humans reclaim the world so that they could return it to its previous state, and that was just silly. She had pushed the thought aside because she had found value in her adoptive mother, Helen Justineau, and the sergeant, Parks, but at certain times, now, for example, the thought would tease her mind again.

Melanie sighs, “You trust her, and I’ll just follow your lead, alright?”

Lexa nods as she pushes open the doors of the building. She immediately groans at the sight she is met with. Pike and his task force have gathered outside of the building, no doubt preparing to make a scene because Pike has decided to throw a tantrum.

Melanie turns to Lexa and asks, “Should I stick around and help you with the man child?”

Lexa shakes her head, “No. Go prep the Nightbloods for tonight like Indra asked, you do  _ not  _ want to keep the Colonel waiting. I’ll deal with this.” Melanie reluctantly nods and leaves the scene.

Lexa approaches Pike, “Need something?”

Pike scoffs, “Yeah, I need something.”

“Well,” Lexa begins with a smirk, “I would be more than happy to accommodate a fellow citizen.”

“That’s Commander Pike to you, abortion,” spits one of the task force members behind Pike. The name used to burn a seething fire through Lexa’s chest, but she has since become desensitized to it. If anything, she just wishes they would come up with something more original.

Lexa laughs, “I’m afraid you’re not allowed to gather here,  _ Citizen _ .”

“It’s  _ Commander Pike,  _ Captain,” he corrects without moving.”

“I’d say ‘Imbecile’ suits you better, but, hey, tomato  _ tomato _ . Either way, I’m going to need you all to disperse… Unless you wanted to start going by ‘prisoner’?”

Pike turns around to his task force and the crowd of civilians that has gathered, “Do you see now? They won't even hear us! The task force is an essential part of the WLF, we maintain order within our walls, while we expect the Wolves to defend them, but today’s attack proves they aren’t. Now, they’ve met in private, away from your eyes, talking about God knows what. We have no say in this war, we are treated as if we are expendable. Indra is a tyrant!”

Lexa rolls her eyes because she truly was expecting her day to go by smoothly, but now she has to deal with Pike and one of the Jaha’s all in one day. Lexa moves to arrest Pike, “Alright, that’s it-”

Octavia walks out of the building, Diyoza and 4 other Wolves by her side, “A tyrant? You don’t mean to say that our leader is not a just one, do you? Because that would be treason, and I’m sure you know what happens to traitors.” Pike looks away from Octavia, so she looks out into the crowd of people, “You are a part of the WLF, or you are the enemy of the WLF; that is our way. You are not expendable, but you should be proud if you are called to fight.” The crowd seems to agree with Octavia, while Pike and his task force look unhappy that their ‘rally’ has been turned against them.

“So why hide?” Pike retorts in an attempt to gain the crowd’s favor again.

“This war will shed less blood if we have time to plan carefully.” Octavia looks towards the crowd again, “We shelter you from the violence; we bear it, so that you don’t have to. But it’s people like him,” she points towards Pike, “Who poison us from within and make us weak. Trust in Indra, and we will survive as one; trust in dissenters, and die alone.” The crowd begins to turn on Pike, calling him a ‘traitor’ and other, less appropriate names.

Pike begins to walk away, smoke coming from his ears, and his men follow. One task force member, however, stays and approaches Octavia. The wolves at Octavia’s side move to neutralize him before Octavia waves her hand,  _ stand down. _ “O-” he begins before he’s cut off.

Octavia puts her hand up to stop him from talking, “It’s Colonel Blake, and I believe you were ordered to disperse.” Bellamy doesn’t move and looks at her with a look of dolefulness. “I’m not going to repeat myself.” Bellamy doesn’t move, too shocked by how his sister seems to treat him as if he is a stranger. Though, perhaps, that is all they will be from now on, for too much has changed.

_ The ‘proper burials’ in the WLF are not proper burials at all, Octavia thinks. A proper burial means they are brought home and buried, but that is not what happens to the dead in the WLF. No, a ‘proper burial’ was the fallens’ corpses being decontaminated and burned in a ceremony, and whatever remained afterwards was dumped into the ocean. The process is meant to lower the risk of the virus, or any bacteria in general, spreading through the dead. Still, even knowing this, Octavia could not help but wish things were different when the time to bury her father had come. It all seemed to have happened so quickly: She had come home after the mandatory basic training everyone in the WLF is made to undergo and found her father passed out. Though, she soon found out he had died from an overdose. She had shrieked holes into the walls when her attempts to wake him failed. A week later, though it felt like minutes, she was at his ceremony. _

_ Indra steps off of the podium and approaches Octavia. “He was a good man,” she assures her. “I’m sorry we couldn’t kill his kind of demons. You still have potential, Blake...think about what I said.” Octavia simply nods and Indra walks away. _

_ Bellamy is standing next to her. If he is grieving, he is determined not to show it. Octavia is sure he is, though. She feels bad for him. A week ago, he was beaming with excitement about almost being done with the Wolves militia training, and now, he’s abandoned the idea to take care of Octavia. Octavia had insisted he did not need to drop the program, but to no avail. His mind was made up. “We should get home,” Bellamy says solemnly. _

_ They make it back to their small home, barely sharing a word. Octavia is the first to break the silence, “I think I’m going to join the Wolves.” _

_ “No, you’re not,” Bellamy says without hesitation. _

_ “I have to, Bell.” Octavia exacts.  _

_ The obligation is lost on Bellamy. He had meant to serve to follow in his father’s footsteps, and because he used to think it was an honorable thing to do, but seeing his father fall changed his perspective. “I’m not letting you risk your life.You don’t owe the colony anything, O. ” _

_ “You’re wrong, Bell. They’re my people, they were dad’s people, and if fighting for them means I can save at least one of them, then that’s what I’m going to do.” Octavia asserts. “Dad was fighting something he never stood a chance with because he couldn’t even touch it, and I couldn’t save him. It was the same thing with mom; she got sick, and I couldn’t heal her. But what I can do is get rid of the enemy outside, and make it just a little easier within the walls.” _

_ Bellamy furrows his brows and stammers, “N-No, O. Dad died because he couldn’t let go of what he saw on the outside; Mom died because FEDRA didn’t think she was worth the extra medicine. Whatever savior-hero bullshit complex you got going on, quit it.” _

_ Octavia sighs, “It’s not bullshit, and there’s nothing complex about it. You’re not changing my mind, Bell. Indra’s already offered me a spot in the program, and I’m taking it.” Octavia walks away, effectively ending the conversation and leaving her brother with much to say. _

After that, Bellamy had an epiphany of sorts; he realized that the Seraphites and the infected were not the only enemies humanity faced, and he realized that sometimes enemies look like the people in power, people like FEDRA, and people like Indra. He knows, however, that Octavia will never see it that way, not as long as Indra is involved. And so, he walks away, hoping that the situation will repair itself with time.

Lexa makes her way to Octavia. She smiles and offers her hand, “Thank you for the help, Colonel.”

Octavia shakes Lexa’s hand firmly and nods before walking away with her entourage. Lexa’s left with the mass of people slowly dispersing, having gotten their fill of drama for the day. As the dust finally settles, she spots Clarke at the corner of the street. Clarke looks her way just as Lexa begins to look away and smiles.  _ I should say hello _ , Lexa thinks to herself before walking towards the psychiatrist.

“Captain,” Clarke greets her. “I see your morning has been eventful. I’m sorry to hear about the attack, by the way.”

“Thanks,” Lexa says with an exhale and a light smile.

“I’m actually glad I ran into you. If you’re free, we can finally talk, like we agreed. If you want to, of course.”

“I’d love to, Dr.Griffin, I just-” Lexa motions into the distance, “I’ve got some business to attend to.”

“Oh?” Clarke asks. She knows it isn't any of her business, but her job is to be in other people’s, so why not ask?

Lexa nods before realizing Clarke wants to know what she’s busy with. She chuckles, “I’ve been sent to interrogate a prisoner because of the attack. Wells Jaha.”

Clarke’s eyes light up with worry, and strangely, a hint of hope, “Wells? Is he okay?”

Lexa quirks an eyebrow, “Do you know him?”

_ Dodging the question,  _ Clarke notes, but she decides that she’ll analyze that later. For now, she needs to find out more about Wells because Clarke does, in fact, know him. She had grown up with Wells, and they were best friends. However, she hadn’t seen him since February, which was when he’d been arrested, and Indra refused to give her any information on the boy. “I do. I realize it’s not my place to ask, but, please, I have to know that he’s alright.”

“I don’t know, doctor, I’m sorry,” a true fact, since Lexa had not been to the jail in a while. “All I know is that he’s been accused of helping his father.”

All things Clarke is already aware of. Though, truthfully, she does not understand how they could accuse Wells of aiding his father. Wells would never, and even if he had, Clarke doubts he’s any help now considering he has been in jail for months. Nevertheless, Clarke is still worried for him. She doubts the Wolves are being kind to him considering the crime he is accused of.

“I can let you know how he’s doing next time I see you,” Lexa offers. “Guilty or not, I can see he matters to you.”

Clarke smiles with newfound hope. It isn’t much, but it’s more than she’s gotten in months. She’s grateful for Lexa. She isn’t like the other Wolves, who only care about defeating the enemy on the other side of the walls. No, Lexa cares about saving the people within. “Thank you, Captain.”

Lexa nods, “Of course.” She’s left smiling at the blonde in front of her. It was not unusual for Lexa to offer acts of service, but this time, it feels different somehow. Clarke seems genuinely hopeful about the small promise of information, and Lexa’s glad to provide it. They stay there, staring at each other for a moment before Lexa remembers she has a job to do. She laughs nervously, “Anyway, I should get going. It was nice seeing you again.” 

“Likewise, Captain. I look forward to seeing you again.” She did indeed.

—

The walk to the jail is brief, but it provides Lexa with enough time to be alone with her thoughts. She realizes she has a reason to worry, even if she is pretending not to. It seems the WLF is experiencing the same events as 10 years ago; the Seraphites are not difficult to defeat in casual encounters, but numerous skirmishes and surprise attacks are slowly crippling the WLF, and, eventually, they will lead to the the WLF’s demise. Indra knows this. The community does, too. The obvious answer is to get rid of the Seraphites, cut the head off of the snake and watch the body fall. If only it were that easy. Isaac had certainly thought so, and it had not ended well for him. He had underestimated the Seraphites and lost both the battle and his life. Indra won’t make the same mistake, especially not if both Octavia and Lexa’s lives are to be put on the line. They have to be smart. Of course, that would be easier if Jaha did not know the WLF’s strategies and secrets.

Lexa curses the man’s name. He had deserted the WLF in the name of a cure and a mission to save humanity, and yet he was taking the lives of Wolves.  _ Self-righteous, hypocritical asshole, _ Lexa calls him. Though, his anger is understandable in a way. Still, he’s the ‘bad guy’, so  _ I’m going to kill him. _

She arrives at the jail and makes her way inside where she finds a Wolf posted at the front desk. “Good morning, Captain. Is there something you need?”

“I’m here to see Wells Jaha,” she says.

He pulls out a logbook before asking, “Got clearance for that?”

Lexa scoffs, “I’m Captain Woods. I don’t need clearance.”

“Fair enough,” He pushes a button and a buzzer sounds off before the door leading to the makeshift cells opens. He gets up and waves Lexa over, “Follow me.”

Lexa passes the doorway behind him and they enter a chilly hallway. The building used to be a small motel, but after the apartment complex was made into a housing center, Indra converted the motel into the new jail. The rooms were meant to comfortably fit one person at a time, but Indra didn’t want the prisoners to get comfortable, so she ordered for the rooms to be made smaller.

They finally make it to the 16th door, where the guard unlocks the door and motions for Lexa to enter, “I’ll give you two time to talk.” He then walks back to his desk.

Lexa enters the small cell. It smells like an old closet. Wells is sitting at the corner of his bed, reading a book. The circles under his eyes are the color of obsidian and his cheeks are hollow. She can’t help but feel bad for the man.

Wells looks up at her, surprised and then almost fearful. It was rare he received any visitors, but when he did, he ended more bruised than before. The fact that the Captain of the Nightbloods now stood before him was not comforting in the slightest. “Hello,” he whispers.

“Hello,” Lexa returns the greeting. “I’ve been sent on Indra’s behalf. I have some questions for you, Mr.Jaha.” Lexa pulls out a small chair from the table on the opposite side of the room, “Do you mind?”

Wells avoids her eyes as he speaks again, “No, go ahead, Captain Woods.”

Lexa clears her throat before speaking. It’s obvious Wells is tense. The reason why is yet to be revealed; it could be because he  _ is _ his father’s accomplice, or it could be that the other Wolves have not been kind to him. “I’d rather not have to resort to  _ certain methods _ , so I ask that you answer honestly.” Wells nods. “Great. Are you aware of the attack this morning?” He shakes his head. “Well, Wells- can I call you Wells?” He nods again. “Wells, 8 Wolves were injured and one checkpoint was destroyed today. Ambushed by Seraphites. You’ve been accused of aiding and abetting your father, so, obviously, I’m going to need answers.”

“I’m not helping him,” he says, almost begging to be believed. “I swear it, I wouldn’t.”

“He’s your father.”

Wells furrows his brows and stands, “And that’s supposed to mean something? You all seem to forget he left me behind. Even if I was helping him, how would I be doing that from in here? The day he betrayed the WLF was the same day he betrayed me, his own son. I hate him just as much as all of you, maybe even more!”

It seems she’s struck a nerve. Lexa doesn’t give him a reaction, but she is slightly convinced of his innocence. It wouldn’t make sense for Jaha to leave him behind if they were working together. Still, she can’t declare him innocent as long as Indra doesn’t believe him to be. “Sure, but perhaps that’s what you want us to think. How can I be sure?”

“Look at me,” Wells bellows, “What good would I be to him in this state?” He exhales dejectedly before letting himself fall back onto his bed, “Who am I kidding? You’re all the same. You’ll never believe me because you’re not trying to find out if I am helping my father. No, you’ve already decided I am.”

Lexa sighs, “No need to be dramatic, Wells. If you won’t tell me about the attack, then tell me about your father.”

Wells scoffs, “What’s there to say? He’s a proud, stubborn idiot with a god complex. He’ll convince you to die for him, then he’ll pull the trigger himself…” he sighs, “He probably felt threatened, otherwise he wouldn’t pull such a bold attack so suddenly. Whatever you guys did to him- wherever and however you did it— keep pushing.”

The skybridge. It had to be. Lexa nods, “Alright.” She stands and begins to walk out before remembering the small pack of nuts she’d stuffed in her pocket as she left the cafeteria earlier this morning. She fishes it out and tosses it towards Wells. He catches it and looks up at her, confused. “It’s not much, but, whether or not you’re on his side, I won’t let you starve for him.”

—

Lexa returns to Indra’s office and sits in the same chair as always. Indra is fixing herself a cup of coffee, and taking her time, so Lexa just speaks, “I went to see Jaha’s son, like you asked.”

“And?” Indra says as she mixes some sugar into the coffee.

“He continues to plead his innocence,” Lexa takes a deep breath before continuing, “I believe him.”

Indra shakes her head and sighs, “Him and his father have a way of doing that: convincing you, I mean. You mustn’t be swayed, dear. They’re serpents.”

“He just seemed angry with his father, is all. I mean, if they were partners, would his father not have taken him with him? I doubt Jaha set out with the intention of becoming the Seraphites’ leader, so why abandon his son?”

Indra waves her hand in the air, “This is exactly your problem, Lexa. Your lead with your heart. You want to believe people are good even when they’re not. Even if Wells is innocent, if we let him go now, what’s stopping him from joining his father? It’s safer this way.”

“It’s not fair-“

“This world isn’t fair, Lexa,” Indra says as she takes a sip from her mug, “I suggest you learn that, and quickly.”

Lexa sighs. She won’t be able to change anything for Wells anytime soon, and there is more to discuss, so she lets it go for now. “Whatever. Anyway, Wells believes that his father attacked the checkpoint in an attempt to discourage us, perhaps because he felt threatened by our actions, and to continue on with what we’ve been doing thus far.”

“That’s hardly helpful.”

Lexa shrugs, “I think it could be of some significance.”

“How so?” Indra asks, now interested.

“I believe the sky bridge my team and I encountered on our last mission could be of some significance. I ask that you send us back to investigate.”

Indra nods, “Then you shall. Tomorrow night.”

And so it is decided.

Lexa cannot decide how she feels about the mission. On one hand, she’s excited to have another lead. On the other, she’s wary of it; there have been too many disappointments thus far and she would hate for this to add to them. She wants to remain optimistic, though. Unfortunately, she knows her team won’t be happy about the news. They had suggested investigating the bridge when they had originally encountered it, and it was Lexa who had said no. Now, they would have to follow the 3-hour long trek again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for being patient with this update! :)  
> Please let me know if you find any mistakes. I revised it a few times, but always on late nights haha


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Nightbloods return to the skybridge.  
> Indra makes an upsetting decision.  
> Clarke & Lexa meet like they’d previously planned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get excited because there’s Clexa in this chapter

They reach the building once again. The trek had seemed shorter this time, perhaps because they’d walked it twice before already. Luckily, this time, there weren’t any quarrels or unsaid apologies, so it went without issue apart from a moment when Ryker tripped over a log and Josephine made fun of him for 2 miles. On the way up the building, they’d taken note of how the bodies were no longer there, reinstating a fact they already knew: the Seraphites knew that they’d been there.

Anyway, here they are, on the rooftop, looking out at the sky bridge like last time. So far, none of Lexa’s teammates have mentioned how they had suggested investigating the other end on their previous outing, and she’s glad. Though they turned out to be right, she was only trying to follow Indra’s orders. She’s always just trying to follow Indra’s orders. 

And like always, it’s as if Josephine can see right into Lexa‘s head because next she says, “Remember when we wanted to check out the other side and Lexa said no only for Indra to say yes? ‘Cause I do!”

“Yeah, I remember,” Ryker says with a dopey laugh.

Though Melanie enjoys any chance to wander beyond the colony’s walls, this repeated mission is a bit annoying. Still, she understands why Lexa had been reluctant about furthering their investigation. Lexa is the Captain, and that means she is held to a higher standard than any other Nightblood. She has to be careful about her actions and wielding her power. “The Commander had her reasons. She’s never given us a reason to doubt her before,” Melanie looks at Lexa, and her gaze lingers there a second too long. It confuses Lexa, considering they’d addressed this already. “We won’t start now.”

Josephine rolls her eyes exaggeratedly, “ _ Ugh! _ C’mon, Justineau, it was a joke. Don’t get your panties in a twist over your girlfriend.”

“She’s not— _! _ ” Lexa’s face reddens, “We are all friends. Just good, good friends.”

Josephine shrugs, “Whatever you say, Captain. Anyway, were you guys planning on crossing this bridge tonight or did we wanna make this a two-day mission?”

With that, they all approach the bridge. It is still charred from the fire they had sparked on their last visit, and as Lexa looks at the space between the rooftop and the bridge, she realizes just how large they had made the gap. She huffs as she places her hands on her hips, “Anyone wanna go first?”

Josephine playfully pushes Lexa forward, only to quickly draw her back. “‘S gotta be you, Commander.”

Lexa’s blood spikes as she feels Josephine force her forward. It is no secret she is afraid of heights, though, she believes it to be a rational fear. Anything could shatter if dropped from this height. She looks down and only imagines her body lying broken hundreds of feet below.  _ It’s just a small jump, you got this, Lex. _ She breathes in and exhales in preparation. And then she jumps. Lexa is not one to pray. Hell, she hardly believed there’s something to pray to, but she finds herself pleading for her feet to find immediate support.

In that moment, she remembers Costia and Anya again. Anya had been afraid of heights, too, yet she never let it show the way Lexa did. Costia, on the other hand, loved to soar. Lexa sighs at the memory. How she had failed to see that Costia had always been a free soul, aching to fly. All she was in the WLF was a fly hopelessly flapping its wings against a glass window. Though, Lexa had failed to see that the dark-skinned girl was actually a bird in a steel cage. They were different. That was something Lexa is slowly realizing every time she remembers the girl. They were different and young and mistaked their closeness- no, dependence— for love. Anya, though, was not different. Anya was grounded and afraid to go beyond the confines of gravity, the natural law. Anya was predictable and safe. She was Lexa. But that only brought Lexa sadness, for if Anya had no willingness to fly and soar, then the possibility that Anya had defected and is alive shrivels up even more than it already has. Her death only becomes more of a sure thing. And so, Lexa forces herself to stop thinking about it.

Melanie goes second, but she isn’t afraid at all, her past having made her comfortable with the air. Josephine follows, and then Ryker. They make their way forth, following the bridge to its other end. Just as they had predicted the last time they had been at the building, the skybridge stretches over a great distance, the other side being hidden in both fog and, perhaps, miles. They have no way of knowing when they will meet the other end, if there even is one.

After about 30 minutes, the end comes into view. It was another rooftop, except it lays below the bridge. There’s a rope dangling from the end of the bridge, no doubt the way down. Lexa’s palms begin to sweat as she realizes she’ll have to climb down using the rope. Her life would literally hang by a thread— well,  _ threads. _ Nonetheless, she forces the ugly feeling in her stomach aside and puffs her chest. She will be strong, and even if she is afraid, she will find her enemy and eliminate it. A rope and a bridge will not interfere with that plan. She wipes her hands on her pants,  _ Wouldn’t want to slip, _ and crouches down. She grabs hold of the rope and lowers herself off of the bridge. Her knuckles are white as she grips onto it like her life depends on it…because it does. The Captain feels her blood spike with every inch she descends. It feels like she has been doing this for hours, until, finally, her feet feel solid ground. It’s only now that Lexa realizes she had forced her eyes shut the entire time. Again, her team follows until they all find themselves on another rooftop.

This building is deeper into the city. That much is apparent by the number of buildings surrounding it, and the overwhelming smell of rot. Lexa looks to her teammates. “On me,” she instructs, “and stay alert. Fungus or crazy, don’t let your guard down.”

They make their way into the building and down its floors, finding nothing. Had they investigated the other night, they might have found a camp or something, anything— but they hadn’t, and so, they don’t. On the last floor though, Ryker suddenly perks up, “I got something recent.” His nose lifts into the air, following an invisible trail, “This way.” He hops through the broken window and into the street. Why he didn’t simply use the door, Lexa couldn’t possibly guess. Ryker and Josephine seem to have a knack for theatrics.

They follow the boy all the way to the entrance of an underground subway station. Lexa hates these. Though Nightbloods are not a target for the infected, the smell of the spores is never inviting; not to mention how dark the underground always is— and wet. The fact that the Seraphites have used this route rules out the possibility of a Bloater or Shambler waiting underground, which is a good thing, as they are the only potential obstacle. Over the years, Runners, Stalkers, and Clickers had become less common as the Infected progressed through the stages of CBI. It made it seem like the world was healing, but it wasn’t. Perhaps it never would.

Lexa is the first to step down into the subway station. She clicks on her flashlight and looks around. The left side is blocked off, meaning they can only go right. Lexa takes in a deep inhale. Nothing. Well, nothing close or present, anyway. The group walked through the tunnel until they reach the other side, which is part of the forest.

“They’re close,” Ryker says and he begins to climb out.

Josephine pulls him back down. “Are you stupid? If they’re close we can’t just jump out.”

“They’re probably asleep,” Ryker says impatiently, “Let’s go.” He begins to climb out again before Lexa pulls him down.

“Are you forgetting that  _ I _ give the orders?” Lexa huffs, “I’ll go first.” She can smell the Seraphites nearby, too. Though, there isn’t any fear in the air. That leads Lexa to believe that they are, in fact, asleep, but she wouldn’t have felt comfortable letting Ryker lead the way. He’s too unpredictable.

Lexa climbs out and is met with the midnight forest air. It’s dark, and quiet, almost like everything living has abandoned the area. Being a Nightblood, she can see better than a human could, but even that is limited. The maze of trees doesn’t let her see very far, and if anything is nearby, she hasn’t caught sight of it yet. She crouches down into the opening and instructs her team to follow, and they do. When all four of them are on the surface, they begin to move in the direction of the Seraphites’ scent.

“We should split up and surround them,” Lexa says.

Josephine chuckles and shakes her head, “Nope. There is no way in hell I’m walking through these woods alone.”

Melanie rolls her eyes. “Of all people, I least expected you to be afraid, Lightbourne.”

“I’m not afraid,” Josephine retorts.

“I’ll go with you,” Ryker offers.

As the pair begins walking off in another direction than Lexa and Melanie, there is a rustling noise coming from above them. Lexa looks up and spots them, immediately moving her hand to her holster, but it’s too late. The Seraphites drop down onto them, the weight of their bodies pushing the Nightbloods down. Lexa feels the dirt scrape her cheek, and she hears her friends resist against the attackers. The one on top of her is a burly man, but that doesn’t stop Lexa from overpowering him and tossing him off of her back. Surprisingly, Ryker is the only other Nightblood that has managed to escape the Seraphites’ grasp. Though, the reason for that is that he’d torn into the woman’s neck, killing her. He lunges at the woman holding Josephine down, but just as he makes contact with her neck, another Seraphite shoots an arrow into his arm. He falls with a yelp. Lexa’s attention is taken from the man as she looks at Ryker. A mistake, for the Seraphite takes it as an opportunity to slash across her shoulder and upper chest. And then there’s a shot. The male Seraphite falls. Lexa looks behind her to find Melanie struggling against another Seraphite man while holding her gun in Lexa’s direction. Lexa races over to help her. She snaps the man’s neck and frees Melanie from under him.

They’re all free now. Except the Seraphites are, too. They had brought a bigger group with them, so the four that Lexa and her team had taken out were of little importance. Josephine looks like she is about to charge at them, get revenge for hurting Ryker, but Lexa stops her. “We can’t, we have to go!”

They began to rush away from the Seraphites and back into the subway system. The Seraphites do not let up their assault, though. Arrows fly through the air, some finding their way into the Nightbloods’ skin, but they keep on. Whether it is their adrenaline or something else carrying them, the Nightbloods reach the other side of the subway station quickly. It is only then that their wounds catch up to them. One by one, they fall in exhaustion and pain.

—

Lexa wakes to her torso throbbing and fluorescents blinding her. She sits up in the hospital bed and rubs her temple. Her head is pounding. Lincoln rushes over to her and puts his hand on the shoulder opposite her wound, trying to slow her movements. “Whoa, slow down, Captain.”

Lexa looks at him, confused, “How-“

“A scout rover picked you guys up, said you were all passed out on the ground with arrows sticking out of you. They brought you back a few hours ago.”

It feels like a fever dream, a very painful one to be exact, but it is coming back to her— in pieces. The building, Ryker, the woods, the ambush. “Is my team- Are they okay?”

Lincoln motions to the rest of the room. There are a few beds set up, three of them being occupied by her friends. They all seem in pain and tired, but at least they are alive. “Mostly flesh wounds.”

Lexa lets her head fall against the wall behind her. “Good,” She says, relieved. “And you, have you been well?”

“Yeah,” Lincoln smiles, “Same old same old. Mostly just been hanging out with Octavia when I’m not here.”

No matter how cold Octavia was with Lexa, Lexa never thought her to be a bad person, and that is mostly due to the way Lincoln talks about her. He seems happy with her, and, therefore, Octavia  _ has to be _ a good person, even if she doesn’t show it. “I’m glad,” Lexa smiles back. Lexa looks around the room and sees Melanie sleeping, Ryker trying to get Josephine’s attention, and Josephine seemingly getting along rather nicely with Dr.Santiago. An odd pair, considering how serious the man is, but Lexa waves it off as her attention moves to another figure.

Clarke walks into the room, brows fixed in a worried expression and quickly races to Lexa’s bedside. “L- Captain, I came as soon as I could. Are you alright? Do you need anything? How are you feeling? God, I’ve been worried since they told me what happened. I should’ve been here, I’m so sorry. Do you need anything?”

Both Lexa and Lincoln look at Clarke with wide eyes, taken aback by her frantic rambling. Lincoln chalks it up as the psychiatrist being worried her prized subject has been hurt, almost lost, but Lexa clings to the woman’s worry. Clarke has been worried. About her. And that could only mean that Clarke cares. Right? For some odd, strange reason, that makes Lexa feel—  _ warm _ . She stares into the blue orbs and furrowed blonde eyebrows staring at her, glancing from eye to eye— almost searching.  _ Do you mean that? _

_ Of course I do. _ They seem to say.

It’s as if she is caught in a trance, or being held there and she has no intention of resisting.

She remembers she has to speak and smiles awkwardly as she lets her gaze fall away from Clarke. “I’m fine, thank you, Ms.Griffin.” She looks back at Clarke and finds her still staring, though, this time, Lexa smiles genuinely,  _ Really. _

Lincoln observes the scene unfolding before him and chuckles at what he so obviously finds in it. “I hate to leave you, Lex, but I’ve gotta check on Melanie and Ryker since  _ someone’s _ only checked on Lightbourne. Clarke, can you take over for me?”

Clarke nods almost instantaneously before looking at Lincoln, “Yeah, of course.” Her attention doesn’t stay on him long, though. When he is far away enough for them to be as alone as they can be, Clarke frowns. Her hand moves forward slightly before settling down on the sheets again. A hesitation. She won’t reach for Lexa yet, they haven’t known each other long enough, though Clarke wishes they did. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Lexa smiles again, the girl can really worry. She’s definitely Abby’s daughter. Lexa puts her hand over Clarke’s as if Clarke is the one in need of comforting, “I promise I’m okay.”

“Hmm,” she thinks to herself, “I’ll stay a while longer just in case, okay? If you need anything, just ask.  _ Anything. _ ”

“Okay,” Lexa nods. And then she feels Clarke turn her hand over and grip hers. She doesn’t dare look at the blonde, though, afraid that acknowledging it will ruin it. She sits there like nothing happened. The only thing that might give up how flustered she’s gotten is the hammering of her heart against her chest. She’s sure everyone can hear it.

On the other side of the room, Ryker has given up his futile attempts at getting Josephine’s attention. Josephine is laying on her side now, giving the doctor before her her full attention. She reaches up and plays with the flap of his coat, “How come I’ve never seen you around?”

Gabriel lifts a brow as his hands move to his hips, “You have.”

Josephine winces, “Oh.” She chuckles as she playfully rubs her head, “I’m sorry about that, must’ve hit my head.”

“Maybe I should check that out for you then, Lightbourne,” he says with a laugh.

“Maybe you should,” Josephine plays along. “So, where have I seen you?”

“I’ve been around the hospital since I was a kid. I was there when your dad brought you in and he’d talk to me when Isaac and Abby made him wait outside the observation room,” he grimaces as he explains, “I’m sorry about what happened, by the way.”

Josephine’s jaw tightens at the mention of her father. What she would give to leave her past buried. Had it been anyone else, she would have dropped her comedic relief act and blown up on whomever dared to remind her of her father. But she has a feeling Gabriel is different. Or maybe it’s just his smile. Whatever it is, it leads her to just nod and quickly change the subject, “Nothing to apologize for. Anyway, when do I get to leave? You guys have shitty food.”

Gabriel grins and grips his chest where his heart is, “And here I thought you were enjoying my company.”

“I am! But, maybe, I could enjoy it more somewhere else… preferably on one of your off days.”

Gabriel laughs and nods, “I think I’d enjoy that a little more, too.”

Indra and Octavia walk into the room looking like they always did: like they were ready to gut someone for answers. But when Indra’s eyes land on Lexa, her expression softens.

Clarke glances at Indra approaching and then back at Lexa. She figures Indra won’t want her listening in on the conversation, so she excuses herself. “I’ll give you some time to talk.”

Lexa has to stop herself from asking her to stay. As Indra nears her bedside, she straightens up as best she can. A mistake, since she feels a stinging aching on her side as she moves. Nonetheless, she smiles at Indra and Octavia. “Indra, Octavia,” she greets.

If Octavia is worried for Lexa’s well-being, she doesn’t show it. “Glad to see you back in one piece, Woods,” a simple acknowledgment based on professionalism.

Indra grabbs Lexa’s hand and quickly looks her over, searching for any serious injuries. Even though she meets Lexa’s gaze when she doesn't find any, she still asks, “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, really, it wasn’t a big deal,” Lexa says. Perhaps it was, but she never missed an opportunity to show Indra that she was strong.

Octavia’s eyes shift around the room impatiently, and Lexa realizes they hadn’t only come to see if she’d made it back alive and with all of her limbs still attached.

“What’s wrong?” She asks, more at Octavia because she knows Octavia won’t sugar coat or hesitate to say.

Octavia glances up at Lexa, surprised to be asked the question. She looks at Indra for a split second, wondering if it is her place to say, before returning her gaze to Lexa. “We’ve decided the Doskola Company will be put out of commission until further notice.”

“W-what? But-”

Indra sighs, “I know what you’re going to say, but, frankly, we cannot risk this happening again… you could’ve died last night, Lexa. And for what?”

“For our people,” Lexa says, like the answer is obvious.

“Our people need you alive.”

“Our people need me to do my job.”

“And how will you do it from the grave?”

“I realize and appreciate your concern, Indra, but this is what we were meant to do. Or what? Will we just ignore our mission once our enemy begins to fill their role? That’s just letting them win. And I refuse to let them win— I refuse to let  _ you _ let them win. You may be fine standing idly by as they trample over what we’ve built, but I won’t.”

It was rare that Lexa would snap at Indra that way. And it always ushered in an air of awkwardness. One that Octavia has no interest being a part of. “I’ll leave you two to talk,” she says before excusing herself and walking in the direction of Lincoln.

Indra’s face remains unphased, but inside, she was feeling the grief of almost losing a child and the anger of having her child disrespect her. “I understand that you’re upset, Lexa, but the decision has been made. I did not come to ask for your permission, I’m only letting you know.” A mother putting her foot down. And with that, she turns and leaves.

Meanwhile, Octavia catches Lincoln’s attention with a quick kiss on his cheek. It earns her an odd look from Melanie, as if the Nightblood is thinking,  _ You do that? _ Octavia has a working theory that everyone, other than Lincoln and Indra, believes she’s the antichrist or something. She ignores Melanie and gives Lincoln a smile, “Hi.”

Lincoln smiles at her as he finishes up whatever he was doing with Melanie’s medical chart. “Hi,” he echoes. “Did you guys come to check on Lexa?”

Octavia shrugs, “Yeah, and some other stuff.”

“And I suppose you wanna tell me about it?”

Octavia looks around. They are a safe distance away from Melanie’s bed and everyone else. She doesn’t want anyone knowing that she loves filling Lincoln in on all the gossip. “Indra’s temporarily putting the Nightbloods out of commission because of the attack. The Commander’s pretty upset about it, and I don’t doubt the rest of them will be, too, once they find out.”

“Hmm,” he says. “What do you think about it?”

Octavia sighs, “I’m not sure. On one hand, Indra’s right: we could’ve lost one of them. But on the other hand, they’re soldiers. They signed up to die. If not them— if not  _ us _ , then who? And, frankly, I don’t think it’s the smartest move to pull your strongest player in the middle of a war. We need them— out there, fighting. I suppose I’m not really with Indra on this one.” Octavia could never say that to Indra. Could never say it to anyone, actually. Only Lincoln. Because Lincoln always understood and listened.

Lincoln glances over at Lexa who is practically fuming.  _ Yeah, definitely not happy. _ “Why don’t you tell Indra what you think? I know Lexa would appreciate it.”

“Indra won’t listen to me. Not right now at least. She’s afraid.”

“Lexa’s been hurt before. What makes this time different?”

“I don’t know,” Octavia shrugs. “Indra hasn’t been making the best decisions lately. I feel she’s…  _ doubting _ our ability. I hate to say it, but I think she’s scared of Jaha. And she cares too much for Lexa to gamble her life.”

Clarke returns to Lexa’s side, Lexa doesn’t even glance at her this time. “What happened?”

“The Doskola Company’s earned themselves a time out,” Lexa huffs bitterly. “Looks like you’ll be getting me alone sooner than I thought.”

It comes out as a biting remark. Clarke frowns and doesn’t say anything. “I didn’t mean it like that,” Lexa assures her apologetically, “I’m sorry.”

Clarke smiles, “No worries, I get it. I’d be upset, too.”

“Hey,” Lexa begins because she truly didn’t mean to offend Clarke, “how about tonight?”

“What?”

“Let’s meet tonight. You said you wanted to get to know each other personally before our work started, and I think we should.”

Clarke lets out an awkward half-laugh, “I don’t wanna be a burden-”

“You’re not,” Lexa assures her. “I want to, really.”

“Well...okay,” she nods.

Lexa smiles, and it’s a genuine smile that shows her teeth and brings hope to her eyes. “Great. We can meet at the field around 8, yeah?”

“Sounds good… and, I promise, no psychoanalysis, so don’t worry about that,” Clarke says in an attempt to ease whatever worries Lexa might have, but her awkward delivery probably has the opposite effect.

“Okay. Field. 8 o’clock. No psychoanalyzing.”

And so, they come to an agreement.

—

Lexa was discharged from the hospital around 5 after practically begging Abby. After that, the day passed by rather quickly. When the sun approached the horizon, Lexa knew the time to meet Clarke was almost upon her. And, for some reason she couldn’t name, she felt nervous. Though, she excused it as being worried about the project and not just because it was Clarke.

She approaches the field ten minutes before the agreed time, setting down in a spot near the entrance. She leans against the wire fence that surrounds the entire field and lets herself take in the open space. She glances up at the sky for a moment, but quickly draws her attention away— she won’t do that tonight.

Five minutes later, she hears someone approaching, but doesn’t turn her attention towards them. And then someone’s sitting next to her. She turns and finds Clarke. Both early,  _ of course. _

“Captain,” she greets.

“Doctor,” Lexa returns.

“It’s nice out,” Clarke acknowledges. “I haven’t been here in a while, not since the movie night last month.”

“You should come out here more often. It’s nice.”

“I take it you like it here, then,” Clarke says.

Lexa smiles, “Yeah.”

Clarke smiles, “You’re very quiet when the subject of the conversation is you.”

“It‘s rare I talk about myself,” Lexa says, not meeting Clarke’s gaze.

“Why is that?” There's genuine curiosity in her voice.

“You said no psychoanalyzing,” Lexa reminds her.

“I can’t help it.”

Lexa chuckles. “Why is that?” she echoes.

Clarke grins, “Touché, Captain.” She shrugs, “Fine, I’ll bite, if you won’t. But, fair warning: it’s not all sunshines and rainbows.”

“No story worth hearing ever is.” Lexa shifts in her place so that she is now facing Clarke, “I’m ready.” She sits up straight and smiles encouragingly.

“I was born in the FEDRA QZ. From what I’ve been told, things were as good as they could be for the first few years of my life. But when I was 7, my dad was arrested and executed by FEDRA. ‘Inciting violence’— he’d picked a fight with a soldier over my mom’s rations,” she exhales deeply as if pushing a great weight off of her, probably the air of seriousness. “Like I said, I was only 7, so I don’t really remember him. I look like him, though. I think. Everyone who knew him says I do, so… Anyway, my mom didn’t take it really well. We didn’t talk too much for a while. The next year, she followed Jaha, Isaac, and the Patterson’s into the rebellion and joined the WLF. And then she buried herself in her work. I was young, so I didn’t really understand that she was hurting, too. I didn’t understand that the way she was acting didn’t mean she didn’t love me anymore. But as I got older, I became obsessed with trying to understand, trying to help her— trying to help anyone I could.”

Clarke continues on, “Obviously, considering it’s been 16 years since I got here, things are better now. I’ve got a job, I’m alive— my mom’s alive…and between us, I think she might have a thing for Kane, so I guess everything turned out alright.”

“I’m glad.” It’s a simple statement, but Lexa hopes the look she has on her face tells Clarke just how much she means it. Lexa had heard about Jake Griffin’s death; never in detail, she just knew Abby had a husband and he’d passed. An assumption had been made that it affected the Griffin family, but hearing it from Clarke drove it home. Who could’ve guessed under the friendly exterior, there was a girl who had undergone so much so young. This world was rarely kind to anyone, so it wasn’t much of a surprise, but, still, Lexa felt sympathy for the girl before her.

Not wanting to let the conversation get  _ too _ heavy, Lexa changes the subject to something more positive, “I forgot to tell you earlier, but I went to see Wells, as I’d told you I would.”

“And?” Clarke asks as she leans closer towards Lexa.

“I won’t lie, he didn’t look very… well— no pun intended, I swear— but I’ll try to put in a meal order for him and change the guards in charge of him,” she promises.

Clarke sighs. Albeit not what she was hoping, it was something. “Thank you, really.”

Her hand drifts over to Clarke’s before she can even realize what she’s doing. Quickly retracting it, it becomes a quick, awkward tap. “Don’t mention it. I know it can be difficult worrying for someone you’ve been separated from, and I can see you care for him.”

“I’ve known him since before Jaha and my mother joined the WLF. Everyone and everything has always changed, but not him. He’s always been Wells,” she pulls her knees up to her chest and rests her head on them. She smiles wistfully as she continues, “He’s my best friend.”

They sit in silence for a moment. Lexa stares at the grass under her hand, while Clarke gazes up at the sky. It’s a comfortable silence. They’re meant to get to know each other, but it feels like they already do— it feels like they always have.

“So, Captain,” Clarke begins, “I think it’s your turn to share.”

Lexa chuckles and nods, “I suppose it is…”

“...Well?”

“There’s  _ a lot _ of…gory….details,” Lexa says. “I just don’t want to upset you.”

Clarke knew what ‘gory’ details Lexa was referring to— she’d read her file. “You won’t upset me,” Clarke says as she reaches out and lands her hand on Lexa’s.

Lexa’s hand tenses for a moment against Clarke’s touch before it relaxes. She looks up at Clarke with wonder in her eyes. They meet each other with a smile, and Clarke takes her hand back. Lexa almost reaches out for it.

She clears her throat, “I suppose I’ll start in the beginning… I was born in a cabin— somewhere in north Idaho, between Washington and Montana. I know that because that’s where my mother’s body was. I don’t know where my father went, or how long he stayed after my mother’s death— If he even did. I survived off of my mother’s body, then animals. Around 16 years ago, a lot of travelers began to pass through— dissenters from the Washington QZ, I imagine. Those were the first people I can  _ really _ remember. Because I’d watch them. I’d let them find the cabin and just watch them before I’d eventually do what I needed to do to survive. I remember this particular group where it was two men, a woman, and a young girl. I remember watching the woman sing the girl to sleep because she wouldn’t stop crying, and holding her through the night because, even then, she wept. I learned about family— about being human. Anyway, one day, this group shows up nearby. I hadn’t fed for a day or two, but they all had guns, so I knew I had to be smart about it— I’d been shot before. I lured one of them back to the cabin and…did what I had to, but one of them ended up walking in. It was Indra. She had her gun pointed at me and I thought I was done for. But then she didn’t shoot,

“No, she offered me a candy,” she smiles, “And it was the first time I was seen by someone who wasn’t dead. I kept planning to kill her, but I just couldn’t. And then she brought me here. And despite the walls— despite being hidden…it was like I was finally seeing the world. I mean, I had friends for the first time in my life…I also had Costia. Costia was…I don’t know,” Lexa looks up at the sky and exhales, “She looked like the sky. The deep, deep black blue with the white highlights from the light. She was-“ Lexa blinks as if waking up from a daze. She straightens her back and clears her throat, “Right. Anyway, I’m sure you know the rest.”

Costia. Clarke had heard the name, and it takes her a moment before fully remembering  _ where _ she’d heard it. She was the Nightblood that had defected from the WLF and disappeared— the Nightblood rumored to be the Captain’s ‘girlfriend’. Clarke wants to ask more about her, as she seems like something the Captain meant to keep unsaid, but she doesn’t.

They continue talking— more lighthearted after Lexa’s monologue— until they decide the night has reached its end. Lexa offers to walk Clarke home, and, of course, Clarke lets her.

When they reach Clarke’s door, Lexa smiles and offers her hand, “I had a pleasant time tonight.”

Clarke shakes Lexa’s hand and returns the smile. “I did, too. I hope we can do it again sometime— as friends.”

“Of course,” Lexa speaks softly. “I- I’m excited to start our work, Doctor.”

“Call me Clarke.”

“Right, Clarke.” The word slides off her tongue like it was only ever meant to be said by her. It tastes of something sacred, and before Lexa can even realize it, she’s swearing to treat it as such. She swallows hard, pulling her nerves out of her mouth and down her throat, “Call  _ me _ Lexa.”

Clarke grins, “Okay, Lexa.” They stand there, just smiling like no actions other than that one had ever been invented. Lexa looks  _ softer _ in the moonlight, and Clarke has to fight the urge to reach out and feel the Captain’s features. If someone came to her and described what she was feeling in this moment, she’d label it infatuation. She knows that may very well be what this is. But it doesn’t feel like infatuation. It feels too real. This connection doesn’t feel like one that had just been made— it feels like one that had always existed and was only now being discovered.

“Well,” Lexa clears her throat, “I’ll let you go. Goodnight, Clarke.”

“Goodnight, Lexa.”

Clarke disappears behind her door, and Lexa begins her walk home. All the while, the smile never leaves her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I truly, truly meant to post this chapter like a week ago, but Texas is stupid so I got stuck without internet for a while lol. Enjoy!!


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